


A Future of Possibilities

by BlueandBronze



Series: In a Land of Decent Decisions [2]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Arthur Knows About Merlin's Magic (Merlin), Arthur Knows About Morgana's Magic, Canon Era, Canon-Typical Violence, Fix-It, Gen, Good Morgana (Merlin), Gwen Knows About Merlin And Morgana's Magic, Magic-Users, POV Multiple, Protective Arthur, Romantic Relationships Aren't a major thing, Screw Destiny
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-02
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2020-11-15 04:34:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 27,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20860319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueandBronze/pseuds/BlueandBronze
Summary: Since Merlin and Morgana's magic were revealed to Arthur and Gwen, a great deal has changed. However, there are still those out there who will stop at nothing to achieve their aims.This is a sequel to Decent DecisionsHope you enjoy!





	1. Mountains are a place of learning

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I just wanted to start off saying thanks for everyone who's been commenting, or just seeming to enjoy this story I made, I really had never expected anything like that, and you are all wonderful people XD It was so encouraging, and I just wanted to say thanks!  
Disclaimer, I do not own Merlin, or any of the characters, disclaimer applies to the whole fic.  
Concrit is welcome.
> 
> Enjoy! :)

** Chapter 1: Mountains are a place of learning **

“It’s snowed again!” 

Merlin rolled out of the bed, throwing off the blanket, a little thicker than his own, back in Camelot. Immediately, he was hit by the shock of the cold. He pulled his jacket on, and wrapped the neckerchief lying next to his bed around his neck. Hopefully it would do something for the chill. 

Still a little bleary, he made his way over to the entrance of the cave, where he saw the reason he had been called over. It had snowed in the night, and now the cave entrance was sealed. 

This was _why _people shouldn’t take up residence in caves. In mountains. 

Then again, it was still very remote, and not in Camelot, which was most certainly a mark in favour, if you were a dragon who had been banished from Camelot, and a dragon lord who had decided to protect him. 

He’d been in Camelot when the letter had arrived from his father, inviting him and Morgana to come, to learn some magic, and also something about what it would mean to be a dragon lord. Once Morgana had heard about the letter, she had insisted that they left, and so Arthur had mock-grumpily given permission to Merlin to go out on what he seemed to think was a jaunt to the mountains. Morgana had somehow managed to gain permission from Uther to leave, something Merlin still could not quite understand, but was most certainly not complaining about. 

Despite that, it had taken some time to actually get around to leaving. There had been yet another assassination attempt, and that issue with the nest of baby basilisks, but eventually he and Morgana had managed to leave. It had been a long journey, including a certain incident with a hydra which they had sworn to each other never to discuss again. Apart from that, it had been fairly uneventful. They had been met at the foot of the mountain by Kilgharrah, who, after some persuading, had allowed them to sit on his back, and be taken up to the hidden cave he and Balinor had made their home. 

Staying with Balinor and Kilgharrah, without an endless list of chores, was freeing in a way Merlin had not anticipated. And that was paired with how there was no reason to hide his magic. Morgana certainly seemed to be revelling in that freedom as well, the only downside really was the weather. 

“What spell do you think to clear the entrance, son?” Balinor asked, smiling just a little. 

Merlin considered. Balinor seemed to be startled by the fact that he and Morgana had either learned their magic instinctively, or simply out of a single book, and had immediately decided that he should begin their education properly. It was something that both delighted, and exasperated Merlin; while he appreciated the chance to learn more, it was strange to have someone else be responsible for the lessons, and telling him what to do with his magic, and how to do it. 

“Either a blasting spell, or something to do with fire to melt it?” Merlin tried. 

Balinor gave a sort of gruff noise of approval, and nodded, making Merlin feel a small glow of pride. “In this case, I would use a fire spell,” Balinor said, “Less chance of an avalanche.” He waited for Merlin to nod, before continuing, “Let’s see how you do.” 

Merlin lifted his hand and focused on the mouth of the cave. “_Formelt_.” He felt the rush of his magic, the snow before them began to steam, and melt away in a giant rush that began to pour towards them in a torrent. 

“_Onswíf_!” Merlin cried out quickly, his eyes flashing gold, and the rushing water stopped as if it had hit an invisible wall, and began to pour back, upwards, and out the cave, creating a small waterfall as it rushed away. 

“Good work,” Balinor complimented, sounding mildly impressed. 

The craggy faces of the mountains were now in view, going into the distance far away, a vast expanse of greys, browns, and the occasional shock of white snow. The air was brisk, the wind whistling through the mountains, but for a moment, Merlin simply looked out, watching the world, ignoring the cold now biting into his skin. 

By the time Morgana arrived in the main room of the cave, Merlin and Balinor were sitting by a small fire, a steaming pot lying nearby, as they ate their breakfast. She was dressed warmly, with her hair tied back to keep it out the way. She settled by them, as Balinor handed her a bowl of her own. 

Merlin was just finishing, when they heard the sounds of wings flapping, and Kilgharrah landed at the cave entrance, head held high, tucking his wings back. He surveyed them, giving a sort of smile towards Balinor and Merlin, and pointedly ignoring Morgana, as he had been doing since they had arrived, before entering, curling up in a corner and closing his eyes. 

Merlin sighed a little, shooting a grin at Morgana, who seemed to find the dragons irritability more amusing than anything else. 

“You both have improved tremendously,” Balinor told them, scooping out the last of the porridge from his bowl, “But you still have much to learn.”

“Can’t we return, to learn more?” Morgana asked, frowning a little. 

“It’s a long journey, and you wouldn’t be able to make your way here often enough, for long enough.” 

Merlin considered this. “We could continue learning from the book? And make our way here when we can?”

It sounded reasonable to him, but Balinor shook his head, “Magic learned from books can only go so far, although it certainly helps to a point. What of the druids?”

“What about the druids?” Merlin asked, surprised. 

“Well, they are certainly willing to teach magic to people who possess the gift, perhaps you could visit them, if they are nearby. I’m sure it couldn’t do any harm.”

“That could work,” Morgana straightened up, looking interested, casting a quick glance towards Merlin, “After all, we helped the druid child-”

“Druid child?” Balinor asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Merlin and Morgana exchanged a glance. “It’s a long story,” Merlin said, eventually, “But we helped a druid child who was being hunted in Camelot and managed to get him back to the druids. Well, Arthur did. Like I said, it’s a long story,” He finished, grinning a little. 

“In that case, they should feel friendly towards you, when you return, I think you ought to seek them out.”

Merlin and Morgana nodded in agreement, grinning a little. 

This was to be the final day, they were going to have to set out for Camelot. The days had been growing shorter, and there could be no chance of missing the Yule celebrations. They collected their things, which had spread out rather more than they had expected, and packed them into their bags, before saying their goodbyes, and finally climbing onto Kilgharrah’s back. 

The wind whistled through Merlin’s hair, and he couldn’t help but whoop as they flew onwards, Morgana was laughing, as the countryside below whisked away. 

* * *

The room was large, great stone pillars lined the walls, created a corridor through the large open space. The walls were hung with banners, each displaying the same image, the black snake over a green background. 

There was a small open fire, nestled between two large, occupied chairs. In one, was a man with dark hair, in the other, a blonde woman. The man poured out a drink into her goblet, before pouring a generous portion into his own. 

“I’m certain you have not come all this way just to drink, Morgause,” The man began, leaning in to the conversation. 

The fire was flickering, creating strange, dancing shadows across Morgause’s face. “You know me well, Cenred.”

“Extremely well, and yet somehow we’re still close,” He said, chuckling a little. 

Morgause allowed a brief flicker of a smile, before speaking again. “I’ve come to talk about our...old friend,” She began, delicately, “Uther Pendragon.”

Cenred looked more interested now, leaning in a little closer, but didn’t speak. 

“I have a plan, which if enacted, will cause Camelot to be far weaker than it has been in years. Perhaps this would interest you.”

“I do not deny it,” Cenred said, more cautiously now, “But even if you were to succeed in your plan, the citadel itself would still be impregnable. An assault on Camelot, cannot be undertaken lightly.”

“This is an opportunity we _cannot _miss, we must strike while Camelot is weakened. I will take care of that, all you would need is to muster the forces.”

Cenred looked at Morgause, considering. There was a heavy pause, before he nodded, slowly. “Then we have a deal.”

* * *

Merlin was still grinning, when Kilgharrah slowed, circling the air a few times, before coming into land. They dismounted, Merlin thanked him, which Kilgharrah accepted, before taking off again. 

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that,” Came a voice from behind them. 

Merlin spun around, and standing beside a tree, clad in his armour, was Arthur. He strode towards them, and pulled Morgana into a hug, which she protested, although she was smiling. He released her, and they all gathered up the bags, and set off to where Arthur had brought the horses. They mounted, and rode back to Camelot, while Arthur caught them up on what had happened while they were away, which turned out to be very little, and mostly comprised of Arthur explaining the sheer boredom he had experienced. Apparently, he had had a new manservant to replace Merlin while he was away, who, according to Arthur, was the dullest person in existence. Merlin was betting on George from the description. In return, they caught him up on what they had been up to, which was much more interesting.

Soon, the towers of Camelot came hoving into view, and they rode into the courtyard together. Gwen had arrived, and hurried down the steps to carry Morgana’s bags, helped by Merlin, as Morgana and Arthur headed inside. 

Finally, Merlin found himself climbing the steps to his and Gaius’s chambers, he pushed the door open with a familiar creak, and finally took a moment to breathe. 

The room was almost exactly the same as it had been when he left. The constant smell of herbs drying, mingling with the faint scent of burning, (which was always mildly worrying), the bench was covered in papers, and Gaius was standing with his back to the door, muttering to himself as he measured out some kind of purple liquid. Merlin smiled. He was home. 

He closed the door behind him, making a loud creak that caused Gaius to finally turn and see that he had entered. 

“Ah, Merlin!” He said, seeming much more cheerful than usual, “It’s good to have you back again,” he said, pulling Merlin into a hug. 

“It’s good to _be _back,” Merlin said, once he was released, sinking into a chair, and dropping his bag on the floor.

“I’d think you ought to unpack that bag, and then I’m sure you need to go help with the preparations for the Yule festivities.”

Merlin leaned forward, putting his head in his hands, and groaned. Gaius tutted, in an amused sort of way. 

He rose, picking up his bag again, before heading up the steps to his small room. It didn’t take long to unpack his possessions, and soon he was heading out again to get back to work. 

“I’ll have your favourite meal ready for you tonight!” Gaius called after him as he left.

* * *

Entering Camelot was even easier than Morgause had thought it could be. She had cast a complicated, and slightly exhausting enchantment, designed to make her seem nondescript, allowing her to pass unnoticed, but she had somehow expected at least a little resistance. Instead, she strode through the city unchallenged, climbed the steps of the castle, and entered with ease. 

It wasn’t long before she found Uther’s chambers, she passed the guards, and walked inside. Uther was not inside, as she had expected. She pulled out a gem from her pocket, spun from glass, and gleaming a dark, shimmering blue that caught even the faintest light. She released the spell to make her seem unnoticeable and breathed deeply in relief. She held the stone in her hand for a moment, before she began the spell. “_Eac þes, ic gebene þú swefan!_”

Her eyes glowed, and the stone made a quiet humming noise, and seemed to glow just a little brighter. She smiled, and laid it under the pillow of the bed, before turning, pulling the enchantment over herself once more, and leaving the way she had come. 

* * *

The celebrations were in full swing. Merlin exchanged grins with Gwen as often as he could, the two attempting to keep a non-verbal conversation going, which was involving a fair amount of not-as-subtle-as-they-tried-to-be sign language they were making up, that was making Merlin struggle not to laugh and spill the wine everywhere. 

He had been delighted that their friendship had remained intact after finding out about his and Morgana’s magic. She wasn’t _entirely _comfortable around blatant displays of magic, but she did at least still seem to consider them as the same people, which was a huge relief to him. 

After she had discovered it, he had avoided her as best he could, while telling himself that it was all to give her space. Eventually she had marched into his room, where he was cornered, and straightened things out. 

The two were now standing behind Morgana and Arthur respectively, holding large jugs to refill their goblets. The hall was filled with people, noblemen and women lining the tables which were piled high with food. 

Morgana and Arthur were sitting either side of Uther’s chair, and unfortunately this meant that Merlin and Gwen weren’t quite close enough to hear each other speak, hence why Merlin was currently attempting to figure out what in the world Gwen was saying. She was smiling widely, clearly feeling the ridiculousness of the situation, and was giving a quick nod, then jerking her head over towards one of the tables of noblemen, followed by her mouthing something. 

_“I... have...no... idea...” _Merlin mouthed widely at her, which was difficult with how he was also laughing, and trying not to make any noise that would attract attention. Gwen seemed to give up as well and was shaking with suppressed laughter. 

The atmosphere was relaxed, although there were occasional glances towards the head table, where Uther’s chair, set at the centre of the room, was glaringly empty. Arthur and Morgana were talking, leaning in as close as they could, trying to seem casual, but were clearly a little concerned by Uther’s lack of appearance. 

Indeed, Merlin was a little concerned himself, but surely, nothing too terrible could have happened? Surely? 

He’d been back in Camelot for less than a day, surely things couldn’t be too awful yet?

But of course, he was forgetting, this was Camelot after all, things could always get progressively worse. 

* * *

Arthur was worried. The meal passed in a blur, he couldn’t get his mind off the empty chair beside him. Something was wrong. 

When it was finally acceptable to excuse himself, he did so, leaving quickly with Merlin by his side. 

“Don’t suppose you know what’s happened to my father?” He asked, not particularly hopefully as he made his way to the King’s chambers. 

Merlin shook his head, now seeming more concerned, “Honestly, I thought you might know.”

“Great.” Arthur sped up a little. Once he reached the doors, he hesitated, before giving a quick knock. There was no reply. 

He took a deep breath, before pushing them open. 

Uther was lying sprawled on the ground. 

“Father!”

“I’ll get Gaius,” Merlin called, turning and setting off at a run. 


	2. Sleeping Kings do not make good Rulers

** Chapter 2: Sleeping Kings do not make good Rulers **

_Uther was lying sprawled on the ground. _

_“Father!”_

_“I’ll get Gaius,” Merlin called, turning and setting off at a run. _

* * *

Arthur frantically felt for a pulse, he couldn’t feel it, unless...maybe? This wasn’t his strong suit. He rolled him over, silently apologising, and attempted to ascertain whether he was breathing instead. 

He let out a sigh of relief. He was breathing. He was alive. It was just that he wasn’t waking up. 

He needed Gaius. 

Thankfully, he didn’t have to wait long before Gaius and Merlin came hurrying back. 

“Out the way, Arthur,” Gaius ordered, quickly taking in the scene. He checked Uther’s pulse, as Arthur had done, although he was rather more efficient. Finally, he looked up, his expression worried. 

“Do you know what happened?”

“No,” Arthur and Merlin said at the same time, although Merlin continued. 

“But...I’m fairly sure that it’s a magical cause,” He said, with an anxious glance towards Uther. 

“Yes,” Gaius sighed, “I rather suspect you’re right. He seems unharmed, I would say he was perfectly well, except for being asleep.”

“But he can’t stay asleep,” Arthur protested, “Isn’t there a way to wake him up?”

Gaius fixed him with a look. “I will certainly try. In the meantime, if you could help…” He indicated towards Uther, lying on the floor.

“Ah, yes,” Arthur agreed quickly, before helping heave him onto the bed. It wasn’t perhaps as graceful as it should be, but it would have to do. 

* * *

The next day, there was no change. Uther was still apparently sleeping, and no one was as yet sure quite what had happened, or indeed how. Apparently, even Merlin tried to wake him, but there had been no change. 

Arthur was now leading the council.

Word of Uther’s illness had apparently spread, and the unease was tangible. Arthur felt his own anxiety grow as Leon stepped forward, with a bow. 

“There have been reports, sire,” He began, his tone betraying the slight concern, “That mercenaries are streaming into Cenred’s kingdom.”

“For what reason?” Arthur asked, hoping despite himself that it would be something he could dismiss. 

Leon hesitated for a split second, causing Arthur’s heart to plummet. “There is...a rumour that Cenred is amassing an army.”

A rumour. That wasn’t enough. Even so, if there truly was an army, and Arthur did nothing…

“Send a patrol out to assess the situation,” He said authoritatively, trying to sound as if he wasn’t just hopelessly guessing as best, he could. _What would Uther do?_

Once the council was over, he left the room, Merlin at his side. God, he needed to get out, train, hit things…

“You did well in there,” Merlin said, unprompted, smiling a little. 

“Thanks.”

Merlin sighed a little, “Honestly, _Cenred.” _The way he said it, made it sound as if the name itself was an insult. “Do you think it’s likely that he’s going to go to war with Camelot?”

“I really don’t know,” Arthur groaned quietly, “If he finds out about my father's...illness, then maybe. He’s always been an opportunist.” Then something struck him, and he turned to Merlin again, puzzled. “You barely know any royalty, you didn’t even know _me _when we met, how come you know Cenred?”

Merlin shot him a look as if he wasn’t entirely sure if Arthur was joking. There was a pause, in which Merlin seemed to realise that Arthur was entirely serious. “Ealdor is in _Essetir_,” He said slowly, as if explaining to an idiot, “I’m _from _Ealdor. Cenred is the _king _of Essetir.”

Ah. Yes, he really should have remembered that Merlin wasn’t from Camelot. “Right, of course,” He said, trying to cover the moment. “What’s your opinion on him?” He wasn’t entirely sure why he was asking, but it was the first thing that came to mind, and he wanted to move the conversation along. 

Merlin grimaced. Maybe this would be more interesting than he had thought?

“Not great,” Merlin said eventually, “Sometimes he seems decent enough as a king, but he doesn’t care much for the outlying regions, you remember?” 

He did. If Cenred was willing to allow bandits to raid Ealdor, then no wonder Merlin disliked him. Realising he hadn’t yet actually answered, Arthur nodded, not entirely sure how to respond. 

“I need you to go, see if there’s been any change for my father, then afterwards, I’m going to go train.”

Merlin gave a quick nod, before darting away. 

* * *

Morgause looked into the water in the stone bowl, careful not to disturb the water. Scrying had never been her forte, but her magic was strong enough that she could usually see what she needed to. 

Sure enough, Camelot seemed to be in a state of carefully monitored chaos waiting to explode. She smiled to herself. As long as Cenred played his part fully, then soon, the time of the Pendragons would be over. 

She waved a hand over the bowl, her eyes flashed, and the waters stilled, the images fading away. 

* * *

Another day, another council. Morgana sat by, as Arthur poured over the maps, Merlin, Gwen and Gaius standing just outside the circle. 

She wasn’t usually allowed in the councils, but Arthur had made an exception. Another patrol had arrived, bearing more bad news, this time confirming the army, and its intentions.

Leon it seemed had been designated to be the person to inform the council again and stood before them. 

“I would estimate that the army will reach the city in two days,” He said, grimly. 

Arthur began to pace. “Under whose banner do they march?” He asked, with his back to the table. Morgana watched him a little worriedly. 

“Cenred, sire,” Leon answered, “We knew he was amassing an army-”

“How many men,” Arthur cut him off. 

“Twenty thousand, maybe more.”

_Twenty thousand?_ This was perhaps worse than she had even imagined. 

Gaius stepped forward. “I fear that news of the king’s illness has spread beyond our borders.”

Merlin was looking contemplative, some of the less experienced knights exchanged worried looks, while Arthur was still facing away from them so that she couldn’t see his expression. 

“Cenred sees an opportunity,” Gaius continued, before being cut off by one of the councilmen. 

“Then we must find a way to appease him, surely-”

“That’s not what my father would do,” Arthur stated, not looking towards them, “He would not bow to our enemies.”

_How was Arthur still in thrall of him? How could he not see how awful a king Uther truly was?_

“Forgive me, sire,” Gaius said placatingly, “We are outnumbered two to one.”

At that, Arthur finally turned, “What concessions will Cenred insist on?” He asked, but didn’t wait for an answer, “What territories will he demand?”

Gaius answered, “We do not have to give him anything, but it could buy us valuable time-”

“It shows _weakness_, Gaius.” 

_But we are weak…_

Arthur strode towards them, seeming to have made up his mind. “There is only one course of action open to us,” He announced decisively, taking the seat at the head of the table. “We must prepare the city for siege.”

She hadn’t entirely expected that. 

The argument continued for some time, but Arthur remained resolute throughout. Despite her fears for the now inevitable battle, she couldn’t help but feel a small glow of pride for him.

* * *

The army had arrived. 

Arthur looked out from the battlements, at the mass of people gathered to fight Camelot, hollering and cheering, torches dancing interspecies around the ocean of fighters. 

This was worse than he could have imagined, this might have all been a terrible mistake. Merlin shot him a worried look as he gazed downwards. But this was no time to wallow. 

He put his fears aside, and strode out into the courtyard, where Camelot’s meagre forces had gathered. 

People where in the armoury, sharpening swords, pulling on last minute armour, they most of them relatively experienced, but even so, few of them had ever seen a battle quite on this scale for a long time. 

Soon, it would be time. Arthur retreated to his chambers to pull on his own armour. 

Merlin was much quieter than usual. 

“Have you any plans for the fighting?” Arthur asked, realising he hadn’t yet asked either him or Morgana their plans, for the coming fight. 

Merlin pulled the voider over Arthur’s shoulder, an unreadable expression on his face. 

“Not anything concrete,” He sighed, “I have to try and stop them, protect people, without them noticing that they’re even being protected, and I haven't yet come up with anything particularly solid for that.”

“Is there anything I can do to make it easier?” Arthur asked. 

Merlin gave a short, slightly humourless laugh, “Keep Camelot’s army inside, in a room without windows so I can use magic?” He suggested jokingly. Before Arthur could reply, he shook his head, “No, I’m not serious, I’ll just figure it out as I go.”

“Well that’s reassuring.” Merlin didn’t reply and set about one of the straps. Suddenly he looked up, eyes growing wide. “You thought of something?” 

“Yes, maybe, don’t know, I have to go,” With that, Merlin dashed out the room. Arthur watched him go in slight surprise. 

Well, at least he’d finished up most of the armour. 

* * *

Merlin hurtled down the stairs, rushing to the armoury. _Please, please, please…_

Miraculously, the room was mostly empty, and the quivers of arrows, fully stocked, were lining one of the walls. _Perfect._

He was just picking up a quiver, when the door opened. He spun around, but to his relief, he saw Morgana, who looked determined. 

“I assume you have a plan?” She said, without preamble.

“Yeah, actually, grab the arrows.”

Morgana raised an eyebrow at the order, Merlin winced slightly, but to his surprise Morgana didn’t complain, and simply grabbed the closest quiver of arrows, and turned to look at him questioningly. “What now?”

“The incantation is,” Merlin held the quiver, checking first that the room was truly empty,_ “Be__biede forbiernan þæt hatigend.” _His eyes glowed like embers, and the arrows shimmered a bright scarlet for a moment, before the glow faded, and they seemed perfectly ordinary again. 

“Can I ask what it does?” 

Merlin had already grabbed another quiver. “Fire,” He grinned. She sighed. 

“Of course it does.” 

Merlin explained the plan in full, causing Morgana to grin, then held up her own quiver, murmuring the same incantation. 

They piled up the enchanted quivers, and soon they had succeeded, quickly replacing them all back onto the wall, so that they appeared untouched. 

Now just to hope it was enough. 

* * *

Arthur stood before his soldiers. It was time. 

“FOR THE LOVE OF CAMELOT!” He cried out, holding his sword high. The cry was taken up, and they marched out to their positions, most heading out to reinforce the barricades on the streets, some heading to the battlements. 

There was movement in Cenred’s army as well, whatever they were planning, it was about to begin. 

Then came the first screams, as a large ball of fire hurtled through the air, quickly becoming a barrage of fire, raining down, setting the hastily made barricades alight in the streets. 

There were roars, as the army came pouring in, and Arthur quickly threw himself into the fray, standing slightly on a part of the barricade still standing to get the high ground. Swords were clanging, the air was filled with smoke, and by the roaring of the armies, cries of fear, and clashing of steel.

* * *

“Bandages!” 

Morgana grabbed the roll of bandages, passing them to Gaius as quickly as possible. 

She had not been able to fight, but she would be damned if she didn’t do _something_, and the sickbay would have to be enough. There were a few windows, and she would look out whenever she was passing, but it was impossible to make out much. 

Archers had gathered on the battlements, and it was them, and their quivers of enchanted arrows that her attention would focus on. Finally, in unison, in response to an order she could not hear, they drew their bows. Then they fired. As the arrows landed in the midst of the invading forces, they exploded on the ground, sending up cries of shock.

Morgana’s eyes widened, before turning, back to the infirmary. 

* * *

Merlin ran through the streets. There was barely a moon or stars, the light came only from the burning rubble. As he ran, there was a _whoosh_, as a ball of fire fell from the sky. He threw himself out the way, as it landed, exploding outwards in a manner similar to the arrows he and Morgana had enchanted. The explosion of heat knocked him to the ground, and, winded, he found himself lying on the ground, briefly unable to move. But there was no time, he managed to heave himself up once more, and ran on, trying not to notice the slight spinning. 

He was closer now to the yells, and the sounds of clashing swords were increasing in yells. 

Then he heard Arthur’s voice, “PULL BACK! RETREAT!” Merlin arrived, just in time to see Arthur, and the Camelot soldiers beginning to pull back, the invading forces clambering over, now their path was unhindered. 

Quickly he raised his hand a little to focus better, “_Forbearnan_,” He murmured, and a rush of fire filled the street, effectively blocking the invaders. Now they were temporarily diverted, Merlin chased after the retreating soldiers and Arthur, who was half carrying one of the wounded. Merlin grabbed the other arm of the knight, helping heave him away. 

“We’ve lost the lower town!”

He wasn’t sure who yelled, but there was no time to do anything about it. Merlin grabbed the wounded knight more securely, allowing Arthur to escape back into the fighting. 

* * *

Morgause watched the chaos unfurling below. Another volley of arrows exploded amongst her fighters, or rather, Cenred’s fighters. 

They worried her. They could only be magical, and powerful too, something she had not anticipated. They seemed to be a cause of concern for Cenred as well, and the last thing she needed was for him to get cold feet after all this. 

Of course, she already knew of Morgana, that was one sorcerer in the heart of Camelot, but this magic felt different, and besides, Morgana’s magic would not be strong enough to accomplish this, and so there must be another. 

“You claimed that they would be weakened by your efforts,” Cenred said coldly, interrupting her thoughts. 

“And indeed, they must be,” Morgause replied coolly.

“We have taken the lower town, but they are not as weak as you lead me to believe-”

“Patience,” Morgause snapped, “If your forces are as strong as you claim, they should take the Citadel soon. Unless you were mistaken…?”

“I was not mistaken by the strength of my own army,” Cenred shot back. 

There was yet another round of explosions, some now hitting the catapults. One had been readying to fire, and when hit by the arrow, created an explosion, the heat rolled over them even from the distance they were standing. 

Morgause watched in horror, at the wreckage, as some turned and ran. “NO” She cried out. 

How could this be falling apart? She was closer now then she had been in so long. 

“Enough of this,” Cenred snapped, “I’m calling off the siege-”

“You can’t!” 

“I most certainly can. I cannot take this city with the forces at my disposal, that was not what I agreed to.” With that, he clicked his tongue, and began to turn his horse back. 

“You have failed me, Cenred!”

“I would rather fail you, Morgause, than watch thousands of men die.” 

Morgause watched in slight shock, as Cenred and his men turned, leading away. 

* * *

Morgana was helping hold down an injured knight so that Gaius could apply a poultice, when they heard whoops. Everyone paused, looking up in surprise. 

Then a knight, younger than most, burst into the infirmary, grinning widely. “They’re retreating! We’ve driven them off!” 

Morgana ran to the window. Sure enough, the invading army were fleeing, escaping the city like rats from a sinking ship. 

It was one of the more satisfying things she had seen in her life. But now of course they still had a problem, what to do with Uther. 

She wasn’t particularly worried about him, not really, and maybe she was supposed to, but she couldn’t bring herself to be concerned about his health. But it also felt wrong to just leave him, and it would be problematic for the people, Arthur would only be a regent, making it harder for him to overturn Uther’s decrees. 

No, if Arthur were to take over, it had to be as King.

Once Merlin and Arthur entered the room, she called Gwen, and the four headed off to Uther’s chambers.

The room was the same as it had been before, Uther lying on the bed, seeming to be asleep.

“I don’t know what we do.” Arthur looked at Uther helplessly. Gwen carefully put her hand on his shoulder, and he seemed to relax a little more. He turned towards Morgana and Merlin, “Is there really nothing you can do?”

* * *

Merlin exchanged a look with Morgana, who was looking uncertain. 

He had already tried all the spells he knew, but this had evaded him.

“Are we sure it’s not just a poison, could we not make an antidote?” Gwen asked. Merlin paused, before feeling out with his magic. 

“It’s definitely magic,” Merlin said, decidedly, “I can feel it.”

“Like a gut-feeling or-”

“No,” Merlin interrupted, “Really, I can feel that there’s powerful magic here. I just can’t tell where it’s coming from.”

There was a knock at the door then, and they all looked at each other, surprised. 

“Come in?” Arthur and Morgana said together, sounding equally confused. Who else was arriving?

The door opened and standing before them was a servant Merlin recognised as Petrus. He was tall, with a shock of red hair, and was usually Uther’s manservant. He froze as he saw them gathered, looking at him curiously, before quickly dropping into a bow before Morgana and Arthur. 

“What are you doing here?” Merlin asked him, as he straightened up. Petrus looked nervously towards Arthur. 

“I... I came in to clean. I’m so sorry if I’ve interrupted something-”

“It's alright,” Arthur said, “What was your name?”

He looked even more concerned than before. “Petrus, Sire. Do you want me to leave…?”

Morgana shrugged, “No, you don’t need to leave. Feel free to carry on.”

He gave a nod in her direction, before setting about cleaning the floors. Gwen looked rather sorry for him, and quickly began to help. Merlin watched for a moment, but resignedly joined as well. The floor was soon swept, Arthur and Morgana continued to talk in quiet voices in a corner, glancing towards them every so often. When they had finished the floors, they looked over at the bed. Usually they would strip the bed off, to clean, but as Uther was lying there...it wasn’t so possible. 

“We could swap the pillows and the cover?” Gwen suggested. 

Petrus bit his lip but nodded. “That’s probably best.” Merlin shrugged and grabbed a clean pillow. 

“Ok, on three,” Gwen said, looking nervous, “One, two, _three_.”

She lifted Uther’s head a little, allowing Petrus to grab out the pillow under his head, to be replaced by Merlin. Except that when Petrus grabbed the pillow, he gasped. 

“What’s _that?”_

Merlin and Gwen stared. 

“What’s happened,” Arthur called, striding over towards them, noticing their surprise. Then he stopped. 

“What in the world _is _that?” Morgana had walked over to investigate as well. 

Petrus looked horrified. “Is that what’s causing the King to be asleep?”

Lying under Uther’s pillow was a jewel. It appeared to be made from glass, and was a dark, shimmering blue. 

“I think so,” Merlin agreed. 

“What do we do with it then?” Arthur demanded of them. 

“Smash it?” Gwen suggested, then flushed as everyone turned to look at her. “Well, do you have any better ideas?”

“If the enchantment’s held in the stone,” Merlin mused, “Smashing it would be effective.”

“But what if it doesn’t break the spell? What if something worse happens?” Arthur argued. 

Merlin looked at him in surprise. “How do you think this situation would be worsened? And it’s probably going to work!”

“Probably?” Gwen questioned. 

“You’re really sure that smashing the stone would save the king?” Petrus asked quietly. 

“I know _I _am,” Morgana shot at Arthur, who glared at her. 

“We don’t know what will happen!”

“For heaven's sake,” Morgana groaned, and before anyone could move to stop her, she grabbed up the jewel, and flung it as hard as she could against the stone floor. The blue shimmer remained in the air for a moment, until, with a sound like a sigh, it dissipated into the air, vanishing. 

As one, everyone turned to Uther. His eyes opened, blearily. 

Merlin glanced at Gwen. “We should go,” He said hurriedly. She nodded fervently, and the two darted out the door. They had just left, when they turned to see Petrus following close behind, eyes wide. 

“I can’t believe that just happened!” He exclaimed. “We just helped save the King! Can you believe it?”

Merlin restrained a grin. “I know,” He said seriously, “It really was something.”

Petrus shook his head, apparently still in disbelief, before making his way down one of the corridors. 

Merlin shared a look with Gwen, the two restraining their grins, before heading off down another corridor. 

* * *

Gwen bustled around Morgana’s room. 

“So,” She said finally, as Morgana sat by the window, “What’s happening now?”

“The usual,” Morgana sighed. “Arthur gets most of the credit, although Uther has thanked me for my ‘unflinching spirit in the face of sorcery,’ so that’s...happened has well.”

“You’re joking,” Gwen turned to look at her in disbelief. “Did he actually say that?” 

Morgana shot her a grin. “Yes, he did.”

“You know he said something like that to Merlin before as well,” Gwen chuckled. “Uther thanked him for his help in ‘the war against sorcery,’ I think Merlin said.”

Morgana laughed at that. 

* * *

Morgause sat alone on the Isle of the Blessed. It was where she had been raised in her childhood, until Uther had created his war on magic, and began slaughtering everyone even vaguely connected. 

It was a ruin of its former glory now. With Nimueh gone, she was the last High Priestess.

She couldn’t understand how the attack had gone wrong. The only conclusion she could reach, was that there was a sorcerer in Camelot, protecting it. She loathed the idea, that someone could betray magic users in that way, protecting the Pendragons against her, who would bring back magic and cease the suffering they had endured. But it was the only conclusion that made sense. 

She would have to do something about this. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Magic:  
Bebiede forbiernan þæt hatigend - I command (to burn up ; burn away ; be consumed by fire) the enemy
> 
> Thanks to everyone who's left Kudos and bookmarked this story! I'm really glad you've been liking it so far, and I can't wait to get on with this plot a bit further so I can make some much more major changes!  
I'm still not entirely confident about this chapter, I might go back and change this at some point.


	3. What goes on in the Library...Really Should Stay in the Library

** Chapter 3: What goes on in the Library...Really Should Stay in the Library **

Arthur had been having a good day. It had been less than a week since the foiled invasion, but his father had recovered, and it seemed that Camelot had recovered from the attack even quicker than he could have hoped. 

It really had been a good day, he had had a very successful training session, there was a very promising new candidate, who he was certain would do well. All this was ruined however, when he had just sat down at his table for a moment. 

The door burst open, and Merlin sprinted inside, letting the door slam shut behind him. He was visibly out of breath, panting slightly. 

“What the hell?” Arthur demanded, but Merlin didn’t seem to have heard him. 

“I think,” Merlin gasped out between breaths, “That there’s a problem. It _might _be my fault.”

Arthur stood up, staring at him, aghast. “What have you _done_?”

“I don’t really know!” Merlin looked slightly disbelieving, and was shaking his head. “But whatever I did, I don’t think it’s good.”

Arthur stared at him for a moment. “I’m going to need a little more than that.”

And Merlin told him. Apparently, he’d been in the library, going after some book for Gaius, when he had found a secret room, and promptly let some creature loose after it had been locked away. The creature it seemed, had been sealed away for fifty years, and was set on destroying things. 

Arthur was going to murder him. 

* * *

Merlin sprinted to his room, Arthur couldn’t get away with such things without awkward questions, forcing him to have to stride in a much slower pace, and Merlin quickly left him behind. 

He charged into his and Gaius’s chambers, Gaius looked at him with raised eyebrows as he hurtled up the small flight of stairs, rootled around under his bed, and pulled out the sidhe staff, before charging back out again. 

“Merlin, what-?”

“See you later!” Merlin called as he ran back out the door again, nearly tripping over his feet and falling down the flight of stairs beyond, managing to stop himself at the last minute. 

Gaius went back to his potion, as the door shut behind Merlin, and he ran down the stairs with the staff. 

Arthur arrived just as Merlin burst out into the corridor. 

“What’s that?” He demanded, looking at the unusual bundle in Merlin’s hands. 

“Something I’m not supposed to have, so it’s covered.”

“Not exactly inconspicuous…”

“But very helpful,” Merlin countered. 

“So, now what?” 

Merlin considered. “I’ll tell the thing I released to get back into the box it came from, or else I’ll blast it,” He decided. 

“Blast…” Arthur had gone a little pale. 

“Ah, yes,” Merlin said, waving the staff a little, although as it was covered, it probably didn’t help clarify things. “With this!”

“Right…” Arthur was looking completely lost, but to his credit seemed to be trying to go along with it. “So, where is it?”

Merlin halted. He hadn’t thought about that. 

“I have no idea.”

“So,” Arthur summed up, “We are going to run around the castle, you carrying that thing, so that you can ‘blast it’ when you find it?”

That about summed up the plan. 

Arthur seemed to read this in his expression, as his own grew suddenly exasperated. “For someone who can be surprisingly intuitive, you are a total imbecile.”

“Yeah, thanks, I’m trying to think.” 

They heard a crash. They shared a look, and without speaking, the two turned, racing towards Arthur’s chambers where the crash had sounded. 

* * *

Merlin sprinted after the crash, he couldn’t risk losing the creature, Arthur beside him. He skidded to a stop as he found the source of the loud crash. Arthur’s door was open, the room inside was in devastation. 

He stared, just a little horrified, before coming to his senses, and searching for the creature. 

He didn’t have to wait long, soon spotting the creature as it dived under the bed, muttering to itself, sounding disgruntled. 

“STOP!” Merlin shouted, tearing the cloth off the staff, brandishing it at the creature, who had turned to face him, bulbous eyes wide as it took him in. 

“What…” Arthur had just arrived, and was taking in the mess of a room, and the creature crawling out from under his bed, eyeing the staff worriedly. 

“I’m warning you,” Merlin said, ignoring Arthur, “Get back in your box.” 

The...thing stood, watching him a little wary, but there was something else as well, something coldly calculating. “There’s no _need _for this,” It said, it’s voice smarmy, yet clearly intended as placating, “So _sorry_, if I’ve caused any _harm_, it was only a bit of fun?” 

“Get back in the box.” 

The creature grumbled, taking a small step forward, before pausing, looking to Merlin as if hoping he would give in. Merlin did not. It took another step. 

But in the middle of the step, it grinned widely, showing its teeth and before Merlin could move, there was an odd popping noise, and where there had been a small green creature, was now a small glowing ball of light, about the size of a large bee, which was not so much buzzing, more making the sounds of buzzing, as it began to whizz about the room. 

“MERLIN! THE STAFF?” Arthur shouted, seemingly shocked into action. Merlin grabbed the staff, aiming for the small glowing ball. 

“_Akwele_!” He shouted, the staff fizzed, and exploded out. But the small glowing ball continued to whizz around the room, sounding a little more panicked now. 

Then it changed direction suddenly, heading towards Merlin, who quickly raised the staff. Arthur leapt forward, catching the creature in his hands, where it buzzed furiously for a moment. 

“I’ve got it!” He called, before giving a startled yell as the ball of light pushed through a gap between his fingers and whizzed into the air, behind a curtain. Arthur and Merlin both leapt for it, but when Merlin pulled the curtain aside, there was nothing to be seen. 

“I don’t understand,” He said, worriedly, glancing about the room.

Arthur was making an odd, slightly pained expression, before suddenly he straightened, looking at Merlin with distaste. 

“Well, obviously you lost it, idiot,” Arthur said irritably, cuffing Merlin about the head. 

Merlin was too shocked to say anything. 

“Give me that staff, you’re too clumsy to be trusted with it,” Arthur continued to berate, holding out his hand. “Chop chop!” 

Wordlessly, Merlin passed him the staff. “What are you going to do with it?” He said, still feeling rather wrong-footed by Arthur’s unusual behaviour. 

“Put it somewhere that morons like you can’t do any damage. Look at this room!” 

Merlin looked at the room. The hangings of the bed had been hit, one side had collapsed inwards, and there was barely a space on the floor not covered in either Arthur’s things from the creature’s search, or little splinters of wood from the four poster. Or more accurately, the three poster. 

“I expect it all to be cleaned by the time I return,” Arthur said dismissively. 

“But what about the creature?” Merlin protested, feeling that they really ought to deal with that as a priority. 

“It’s gone now, who knows where, and I’m not turning the castle upside down to look for it,” Arthur said irritably, before turning on his heels, and marching from the room. 

“Where are you going!” Merlin called, but Arthur did not reply, letting the door slam shut behind him, leaving Merlin alone amongst the mess. 

Right. 

* * *

Gwen and Morgana made their way to Merlin and Gaius’s chambers, climbing up the staircase, before Morgana, standing a little ahead of Gwen, rapped quickly on the door, before pushing it open with a loud creak, not waiting for a response. 

Then she stopped, and Gwen had to stop quickly to prevent herself walking into her. 

“What’s going on?” Morgana asked, sounding a little baffled, before stepping inside, allowing Gwen to take in the view. 

Merlin had looked up to give a quick wave as they entered, but quickly turned back to the book in his lap. He was sitting on the stool, flicking through the book, muttering to himself unintelligibly. 

“Oh hello, my Lady, Gwen,” Gaius said, nodding to Morgana and Gwen respectively, before turning back to Merlin’s book. “Are you sure it’s not that?” He questioned, pointing at a drawing on the page. 

Gwen couldn’t really see it, except for the vague impression of rather too many arms and legs coming from a small creature. Whatever it was, she hoped that that creature had nothing to do with it. 

Thankfully Merlin shook his head, before quickly flicking to the next page. 

“What’s going on?” Morgana repeated, evidently just as confused as Gwen was feeling. 

Gaius turned back to them, without his usual smile. “We are attempting to identify a creature that _Merlin_,” At this, he shot a glare at Merlin, which Merlin didn’t notice, “Has accidently set loose in the castle.”

“What?” Gwen gasped. “What happened? Are you both alright?” But there was something odd here. 

Why wouldn’t they call in Arthur? If there was an escaped creature, surely Arthur should know, and if Arthur knew, he would be here. 

“We’re all fine,” Gaius reassured her. 

“Not that one,” Merlin muttered to himself, flicking the page over, and scanning the next. “Or that one…”

“Merlin and Arthur attempted to confront the creature, but thankfully-”

“Or that..._nope_ not that…”

“Neither were in any way harmed, and the only damage was to Arthur’s room, which I believe Merlin has managed to fix.” 

“I did!” Merlin protested, looking up from the book, “It was a simple spell to fix it all!”

“Get back to the book,” Gaius said warningly, apparently not interested in Merlin’s cleaning ability. “We need to know what the creature is if we can defeat it.” 

Merlin went back to the book, and for a moment the room was in silence, except for the flicking of the pages, and occasional hmms from Merlin. 

“How exactly did this happen?” Morgana said, an almost commanding note in her voice. 

Gaius sighed. He opened his mouth to begin what was undoubtedly going to be some long, complicated explanation, before Merlin jumped into the air. 

“GOT IT!” He announced, before reading onwards. “Ah.”

“What?” Morgana demanded, although she sounded wary. 

Gwen could only watch with trepidation as Gaius and Merlin read the extract on the page Merlin had indicated. Merlin was looking a little sheepish, while Gaius stared at the page, looking horrified, before turning the look on Merlin. 

“It seems you released a _goblin_.”

Merlin was looking slightly more anxious now. “This doesn’t seem good…”

“What’s wrong with goblins?” Morgana asked Gaius, ignoring Merlin. Gwen had heard about goblins in tales, but she had never thought that they would be real. 

If they were anything like how they seemed in stories, she would hope that they weren’t real. 

Maybe they weren’t similar to the stories at all. Even if Gaius’s expression wasn’t giving her a lot of hope. 

“Goblins are mischievous creatures.” Gaius explained. “_Dangerous_, and mischievous.”

“Right…” Merlin said anxiously, “So, what do we do with it?”

Gaius gave him a look, before continuing. “They will stop at nothing to get at what they prize above all other things.” He paused to make sure he had everyone’s attention. “Gold.”

Gwen gulped. “So, it’s not good that he’s in the castle then.”

“Not good at all.”

* * *

Arthur was screaming. Or at least, he should be. Except he couldn’t speak. He couldn’t move. 

Except that he was. 

And there was a horrible little _presence_, one he couldn’t quite explain, but knew was most certainly _other._

The last thing he could clearly remember, he had been leaning around the curtain, looking for the thing that Merlin had accidently released, when he’d seen the tiny ball of light racing at him, and before he had time to do anything, it had whooshed into his ear. There had been no time to react, there had only been a horrible pushing pressure clawing its way into his head, he couldn’t think, couldn’t move, and just as suddenly - it was gone. 

Or, he’d thought it was. 

But then he could hear the thought, feel the presence of the something else, and that something was most definitely going to cause harm for people Arthur cared about, just for fun. 

He wasn’t sure how he knew, but he did. 

All this had taken place in under a minute. And then, the world didn’t go dark. It didn’t fade as it would if you were knocked out. It faded more as if the world had become a dream. 

Perhaps it was. 

Honestly, that felt more likely at this point. 

Then Merlin had popped up, looking around for the creature, and Arthur had tried to tell him, tried to let him know that _something had happened to him,_ but nothing came out of his mouth. 

And then his hand had raised, and he’d cuffed Merlin about the head. 

Merlin had looked just as stunned as Arthur had felt. The thing that wasn’t Arthur however, did not seem to take note of this, gave orders and left. 

The world faded just a bit more. 

* * *

“What are we doing, Merlin?” Gwen gasped, forcing Merlin to stop. 

He seemed a little out of breath as well, as he should, after he’d just taken off, racing down the stairs and through the corridor. 

Morgana and Gaius were researching goblins, looking for weaknesses, or anything really that they could use against it. Merlin however had suddenly remembered something, and torn out of the room, and after a moment's hesitation, Gwen had followed him. 

“I’m getting Arthur,” Merlin explained, breathing a little heavily, “He needs to know about the goblin, and he might be able to help. Even if he can’t, he still needs to know.”

“That’s a good idea, do you have any idea where he’ll be?”

“Training pitch,” Merlin said easily, starting to move in that direction at a much more reasonable pace, which Gwen joined. 

They made their way over, not talking much, when they arrived at the pitch. And stopped. 

“_What_.” Gwen gasped. 

“I…” For once, Merlin was speechless. 

It was a reasonable reaction. 

The knights were all gathered on the pitch, and each had a large blanket wrapped around their head. They were not wearing armour, but they did have the training swords, and were waving them around, evidently trying to hit one another, and unable to as they couldn’t see, while Arthur, grinning like mad, was yelling out. 

“Sometimes you have to fight under less than ideal conditions! Let’s see what you’re made of!”

One of the knights lunged with the sword, seeming desperate to finally hit someone, except that no one was there, and he fell flat on his face. Some onlookers were casting confused glances as Arthur, but most were outright laughing at the knights stumbling around with blankets on their heads, waving wooden swords. 

Gwen couldn’t help staring. Merlin seemed at a loss for words. Then he gave his head a shake, as if to wake himself up, and quickly strode around the pitch, pausing only to dodge out the way of a stray lunge from one of the knights. Soon he was by Arthur’s side, and immediately began talking, waving his hands animatedly, clearly demanding to know what was Arthur doing, but Arthur seemed unconcerned, just brushing Merlin off. Merlin was looking baffled, and continued talking, hands waving even more now, and Arthur spun to face him, before cuffing him about the head, hard enough that Merlin reeled backwards, and while he stumbled a step backwards, he kept his feet. Merlin stopped talking and was now looking both surprised and a little worried. He backed off, heading back to Gwen. 

Gwen was watching Arthur in complete shock. 

He seemed completely unconcerned and was grinning again as he watched the knights stumbling. Two had managed to connect swords, and seemed to be trying to fight one another, which Arthur seemed to be finding very amusing. 

“Well,” Merlin said in an undertone once he had reached her, “That didn’t go as planned.” He touched the side of his head gingerly, as if checking whether there was any damage, and breathing a sigh of relief as he apparently didn’t find any. 

“Did something happen to him?” Gwen breathed. She couldn’t understand what she was seeing. This was not _her _Arthur. 

Merlin bit his lip, casting a quick glance over at Arthur. 

“Something must have. He’s thrown things at me before, but…” He shook his head in apparent disbelief. “Somehow I don’t think he’s going to be much help to us at the moment.”

“Alright! Take the blankets off!” Arthur’s order cut across them. The knights paused, before gratefully untangling themselves from the blankets, and a page ran in to collect them up. 

“You were pathetic when you were unable to see your opponent, I expect you to work harder at that. You are dismissed.”

With that, he turned, and strolled away. Not towards the castle, instead heading into the town, and soon out of sight. 

Merlin stared after him. 

Whatever had happened, it was bad. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Magic used:  
Akwele - Destroy
> 
> Hope you enjoyed that! Next up, more Goblin stupidity, and a surprising find from Morgana...
> 
> Thanks to everyone bookmarking and leaving kudos! If you liked it, leave a comment to let me know if you're still reading! XD


	4. The Goblin Prince

**Chapter 4: The Goblin Prince**

** **

“Something has happened to Arthur,” Merlin announced as he strolled back in, Gwen by his side. 

Morgana leaned forward, rubbing her eyes. She had been reading so many books, trying to figure out anything about goblins, and while she understood the importance, it didn’t stop the task from being immeasurably tedious. 

“What’s he done now?” She asked, attention half on the book, half on Merlin’s response. 

_ ‘The Goblin, appreciates gold, and will do whatever it takes to claim treasure of it’s own…’  _ But she already knew that. She flicked the page over. 

** **

“He’s humiliating the knights, wasn’t training, he hit me when I pointed it out-”   


“It’s not Arthur,” Gwen added, sounding certain. 

** **

Morgana looked up at them then, book forgotten. “He did _ what?” _

** **

Merlin, however was looking around the room, seeming a little confused. “Where’s Gaius?”

** **

“Oh, he was called away, something urgent came up. Not sure what.”

** **

Gwen grimaced. “So, what are we going to do about Arthur?” 

** **

“Let’s assume for the moment that whatever happened, it’s a result of the goblin,” Morgana decided, “So, we are going to continue to research goblins. See if we can find anything that could explain it.”   


“And if we can’t?” Merlin asked, a little anxiously. 

** **

Morgana shrugged. “Let’s not worry about that for now.”

** **

They’d been pouring over the books for a while, when the door creaked open, and Gaius returned. He was looking a little baffled, yet somehow annoyed at the same time.    


“What’s happened?” Merlin called over from around the stack of books in front of him. 

** **

“Uther.” Gaius said simply. “The goblin has had some  _ fun.” _ His tone was dark, causing Morgana and Gwen to share a quick, worried glance. 

** **

“Is he...alright?” Gwen asked, uncertainly.

** **

Gaius shook his head, not in disagreement, more in confusion, as he began to gather up potion bottles. “Nothing hurt except his pride,” He said ruefully, pouring something from a small bottle into another, making it fizz just a little, until the bubbles died away. 

** **

“But what’s happened?” Merlin demanded. 

** **

“He’s bald.”

** **

Silence. 

** **

“When you say…” Gwen began. 

** **

“You heard what I said.” 

** **

The silence stretched out, until it was broken by Merlin starting to laugh. Morgana couldn’t help it, and was soon laughing as well, while Gwen managed to restrain herself, even while her lips twitched. 

** **

Gaius shook his head in apparent disbelief, turning back to his task. “So, have any of you been trying to figure out how to get rid of the goblin?”

** **

“Of course we have!” Merlin said, a little outraged. “We haven't found much-”   


“Wait!” Gwen announced, jabbing at a page of the book she was reading. “Look at this! _ ‘Goblins are also possessed of the ability to take the mind and body of another, as a means to further their mischief.’  _ That has to be what happened to Arthur!”

** **

“Arthur?” Gaius frowned, “What’s wrong with Arthur?”

** **

Morgana quickly explained the situation to Gaius. “So,” She finished, “We’ve been looking into what could have happened.”   


“I see.” Gaius sat down heavily on the unoccupied bench. “Well, that certainly can’t be good, if Arthur’s been possessed by a  _ goblin.” _

** **

“No.” Merlin agreed. 

** **

“So, what are we going to  _ do _ ?” Morgana asked, trying to keep the conversation going. 

** **

Merlin had gotten up, reading the passage from Gwen’s book over her shoulder with a frown, before looking back up at them. “Well, is there a spell, or a potion that can remove something possessing someone?”   


Gauis considered. “I suppose,” He began thoughtfully, “There must be something.”

** **

Morgana waited a moment for him to continue. When he didn’t, she cut in, “This can’t be the first time someone’s been possessed by a goblin, there has to be something. Have you ever heard of this happening before?”

** **

Gaius sighed. “No. No, I have not.”

** **

She felt a slight plunging feeling. 

** **

“I have an idea. It’s bad.” Merlin spoke up, sounding hesitant, and a little anxious. 

** **

Morgana grimaced. “Well, currently we have no plan,so what’s yours?”   


“Well,” Merlin continued slowly, “According the book...if the host body dies...the goblin dies with it-”

** **

“We are  _ not  _ murdering Arthur to kill the goblin!” Morgana yelped. 

** **

Merlin waved his hands a little frantically, “No! No, that’s not the plan, really, no. No, I was thinking that the goblin would have to leave if it seemed that Arthur would be killed-”

** **

“So you  _ do  _ want to kill Arthur?”

** **

“NO!”   


“This the troll situation all over again.” 

** **

Merlin’s eyes widened in realisation, before shaking his head frantically, “ _ I do not want to murder Arthur! _ But do any of you have any other ideas?”

** **

They exchanged a look, before Morgana sighed, turning to Gaius. “Do you think the plan will work?”

** **

He looked regretful, and didn’t answer for a moment. “I think...it may well work.”   


“Great!” Merlin announced, clapping his hands together, “So, what poison would be best?”

** **

* * *

** **

Merlin bent over the food on the golden plate, and after glancing about him surreptitiously, quickly unstoppered this bottle he had been keeping in his pocket, and poured it over the food. No one seemed to have noticed, the other servants rushing about their own tasks in the hectic kitchen, and he quickly slipped the bottle back into his pocket, letting out a breath of relief. 

He picked up the plate, and made his way out the room, dodging out the way of people running about carrying various dishes or kitchen tools. 

** **

He made his way up to Arthur’s room, and pushed the door open. 

** **

Arthur, or the Goblin possessing Arthur, Merlin supposed, turned to look at him, raising his eyebrows as Merlin entered. He was holding a large box, Merlin recognised it as the box of gold, and Goblin-Arthur slammed the box closed. 

** **

“KNOCK! You fool!” Goblin-Arthur snapped at him. 

** **

Merlin grimaced, he really should have knocked this time, and held out the plate of food. “Dinner? Sire,” He added quickly.

** **

Goblin-Arthur’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, before he stood, and sat down at the table, and looked expectantly at Merlin. 

** **

Merlin placed the food down on the table before him, before taking a quick step back to watch. 

** **

Goblin-Arthur picked up a fork, and stabbed a lump of chicken. Merlin felt in his pocket for the other vial, the bottle of antidote, and clutched it tightly, ready. 

Arthur’s eyes flickered to him, and Merlin held his breath. 

** **

Slowly, Arthur lifted the fork, and sniffed the meat, before dropping it in apparent disgust, clattering on the table. 

“You’d try to poison me? Your prince?” Arthur demanded, sounding genuinely furious. 

** **

“You’re not the prince!” Merlin exploded.  _ Oops… _

** **

Arthur’s eyes narrowed, before he grinned widely, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender. “ _ Alright _ , you got me.”

** **

“You’re the goblin!”   


Arthur grinned a little wider, and inclined his head. 

** **

They stood for a moment at an impasse. 

** **

“So, what exactly do you intend to do next?” The goblin asked, tilting his head a little curiously. “I assume that you take issue with this body?”

** **

“I  _ will  _ kill you.” 

** **

The words hung heavily for a moment, but the goblin’s smile only faltered for a moment, before he began to laugh. “But you can’t!” He cried out, delightedly, “Don’t you see? If you kill me, you kill him! I however...” He said, eyes flashing gold, “Can kill you!”

It felt...wrong to see Arthur’s eyes glowing the golden hue of magic. But Merlin had no time to dwell on it, before Arthur’s small knife, a knife Merlin had sharpened only hours before, rose into the air, pointed at Merlin. It rushed suddenly at him, and Merlin quickly threw a hand up. 

“ _ Culter, ic þe healte! _ ” He shouted, and at his words, the dagger halted in midair, spun, and ran directly at the goblin’s grinning face. No, at  _ Arthur’s _ grinning face. Merlin flung his hand back up, stopping the dagger in its tracks, and let it clatter to the floor. 

** **

Goblin-Arthur smiled triumphantly. “You cannot kill me. If you do, then Arthur dies with me.”

** **

The door suddenly burst open. Morgana stood in the doorway, surveying the room. “What’s happening?” 

** **

* * *

** **

Morgana paced up and down. “It’s been a while, I should go check on Merlin, just in case something’s gone wrong-”

** **

“My lady,” Gaius said quietly, “Merlin is quite capable-”

** **

“He would be more capable if he had backup,” Morgana snapped, coming to a halt. “I’m going after him.”   


“Take this then,” Gaius said, passing her a box. She stared at the box blankly. 

** **

“What’s this?”

** **

“Merlin collected it earlier, it’s the box used to seal away the goblin.”   


Morgana took the box, and gave a nod of thanks, before making her way out of the room, and up to Arthur’s chambers. 

** **

When she arrived at the door, she felt a twinge of anxiety, as she heard a loud crash echoed from inside. 

She shoved the door wide open, not waiting to knock, and looked out at the scene in front of her. 

Arthur, no, _ the goblin _ was standing in the middle of the room, and was looking stunned by her entrance, while Merlin had his back to her, but quickly glanced around as he heard her arrive, shooting her a slightly panicked look. 

She saw a knife lying on the ground, out of place. 

** **

Not a good sign. 

** **

“What’s going on here?” She asked coldly. 

If the goblin was unaware that they knew of him, revealing that would not lead to anything good. However, if Merlin’s attack had failed, then she needed to help. She needed to know what was happening. 

** **

“Morgana,” the goblin inclined his head in a respectful nod, “I did not expect to see you here.” 

** **

Merlin shot her another look, and suddenly she heard his voice, although his mouth remained closed. 

** **

_ “The goblin knows!”  _ The voice that was unmistakably Merlin echoed in her mind, before fading away as quickly as it had arrived. 

** **

She was stunned, but forced her expression to remain the same. “Well, Arthur, I just came in to say...  _ Astrice!” _ Goblin-Arthur’s eyes widened comically, as he was flung backwards hitting the wall, hard. Silently, Morgana apologised to Arthur, hopefully he would understand. And would be alright. 

** **

Merlin however, seemed to be readying for action. “Morgana! We need to force the goblin out!” Morgana nodded, quickly raising her own hands. 

** **

They cried out the spell at the same time _ , “Gewīt!” _

The magic explodes outwards, and Arthur began to convulse, and just as suddenly, began to glow, until, with a loud popping noise, the small ball of light that was the goblin flew out of Arthur’s ear, into the air, buzzing furiously. 

** **

Merlin grabbed up the box, as the lid clattered to the floor, which Morgana quickly seized, while Merlin waved the box like a net, trying to catch the small, angrily buzzing orb, who just kept dodging out the way. Finally,with a look of desperation, Merlin ran at the orb, leaving the goblin no time to get out of the way. Morgana rushed in, and slammed the lid on the box, and they carefully placed it on the ground. 

** **

The goblin’s grumbled echoed hollowly inside the box, and they exchanged worried looks. 

** **

Then they turned as one as they heard Arthur groan from the corner. 

** **

“Oh, sorry!” Morgana cried, quickly heading over to him, where he lay sprawled by the wall, rubbing his head and wincing slightly. 

** **

“What happened?” Arthur groaned. 

** **

Or at least, she was fairly sure that was what he meant to say, what came out sounded rather more like “Wa’pned?”

** **

Morgana took a deep breath. This would probably take a while. 

** **

* * *

** **

“What do we do with the goblin?” Gwen asked, eyeing the box warily. At her words, it began to shake violently, as the goblin, seeming to hear her began to protest against his captivity. 

** **

Morgan shook her head slowly. “I have no idea. Back in the room?”

** **

“You mean the secret room I managed to open by  _ accident?”  _ Merlin asked, raising his eyebrows meaningfully. 

** **

“Can’t we just throw it out?” Arthur asked. He had never loathed another creature as much as he detested that goblin. 

** **

“I’m not sure that would solve anything,” Morgana said, thoughtfully. 

** **

The goblin continued to grumble away. 

** **

“Where is it?” Merlin demanded suddenly, causing everyone to jump, and spin to look at him, Arthur whipped around so fast he cricked his neck. Merlin was standing by the cupboard, of which the doors were hanging open. He had been searching Arthur’s room for a while now, for what, Arthur had no idea. His head was still aching from where Morgana had flung him against the wall, it had been for good reason, but that didn’t stop the wall from being made from stone. 

** **

“Where’s what?” Gwen asked, sounding a little concerned for Merlin’s sanity, a feeling Arthur felt that he shared most days recently. 

** **

“The staff!” Merlin sat down with them at Arthur’s table where they were all gathered, the chair squealing against the floor as he pulled it out. “I just can’t find my staff the goblin stole when he was Arthur.”   


“Oh,” Arthur looked over at Merlin slightly surprised as a memory swam hazily to the surface, feeling like less of a memory, than deja vu. “I think it’s in the library.”

** **

Merlin leapt to his feet, “Of course!” He dashed out the room. Arthur cast a look at the shaking box, and moved it behind the curtain, before he, Morgana and Gwen ran out after Merlin. 

** **

They followed behind him, seeing the red neckerchief vanishing about the ends of the corridors, until they reached the library, where they regrouped, before following Merlin surreptitiously to avoid Geoffrey’s watchful gaze, to the shelf in question. 

** **

“Is this it?” Gwen asked quietly, looking over the books on the shelf with a frown. “It seems...just an ordinary bookshelf.”

** **

“This is it,” Merlin confirmed, before he stepped on to the shelf. “Not sure which book though.” He glanced around at the others. “I think the shelf just spins, so you might want to take hold of it for a moment.” 

** **

Arthur shared a look with Gwen, raising his eyebrows, and she looked away quickly hiding a smile. Morgana rolled her eyes, and grabbed ahold of the shelf, and after a moment's hesitation, Arthur and Gwen followed suit. Merlin meanwhile, was pulling at the books, testing them to see which one would reveal the secret room. 

Arthur had just stopped waiting with bated breath, and was starting to wonder whether this was even the right shelf, when there was a sudden jolt, and the shelves started to turn, and just as quickly, they were standing in a small room, which seemed even smaller than it was due to the number of people inside. 

** **

“Woah.” Arthur breathed. How had he not known about this? 

** **

Morgana’s eyes had widened, and she had begun looking at the books scattered around the room, covered in cobwebs. She brushed a thick layer of dust from one large, leather bound book, and held it reverently in her hands. “It’s magic,” She breathed, her eyes dancing with excitement. 

** **

“A book of magic?” Gwen asked, stunned. “In the royal  _ library?” _

** **

Morgana nodded, and began looking at the rest of the books around. 

** **

Then Merlin gave a delighted whoop, that he quickly hushed, remembering where he was, as he seized up his staff, propped up against the wall. 

** **

“Merlin, look at this!” Morgana showed him the books, and Merlin was quickly entranced by the many books, on magic. 

** **

Arthur picked one up himself.  _ The art of the future _ , the title proclaimed in intricate letters. He could hardly believe that this room existed. “This seems fantastic,” He said, beginning to smile. “This has to be better than just the one book, right?” 

** **

“I can’t believe I missed all this,” Merlin said, shaking his head in disbelief. 

** **

Morgana grinned. “This really is amazing. Well, we are definitely going to need a practice session again soon.”

** **

After they had examined the room carefully, finding so many illegal books Arthur could hardly believe it, as well as a few odd things that he was fairly sure should be being kept in the vaults, they had returned to Arthur’s room to figure something out about the goblin. 

** **

They had been sitting in silence for some while, when Gwen spoke up. 

** **

“What happened to the dragon again?”

** **

Arthur turned to look at her. It was hardly related. 

** **

“Um, he left to go to the mountains,” Merlin responded, seeming as baffled as Arthur. 

** **

“No, I know that,” Gwen interrupted, “I was just thinking, what happened to that cave that the dragon was in?” 

** **

Morgana whipped around to her, “That’s it! That is perfect!”

** **

“What?” Arthur demanded. 

** **

“We could put the goblin, in its box obviously, in the dragon’s old cave. No one goes in there, and it’s secure.”

** **

“That could work,” Merlin said slowly. “So, should we take it now?” 

** **

“May as well,” Arthur said, finally. “The sooner we can put this behind us, the better.”

** **

Gwen nodded fervently in agreement. 

** **

* * *

** **

Morgana descended down the steps, holding her hand up in the air, where she was holding a handful of flames. 

They hadn’t had time to grab torches, and Merlin and Arthur were busy carrying the goblin in its box, Gwen had followed closely behind her. She loved this spell, it was one Balinor had taught her and Merlin while they’d been away, and it was surprisingly useful. 

They finally reached the cave, and they stood together on the rocky outcrop as Merlin and Arthur had put down the box for a moment to catch their breath. 

** **

She looked out at the cave before her. The edge they stood on was an awfully long way up, but there was a narrow set of stairs running to the ground. The cave was enormous, and was lit faintly from streams of light from a gap someway far up, where the cave opened up to the outside world, where the dragon had escaped from. 

** **

“This place is amazing,” Gwen breathed. 

** **

“Bit cold though,” Morgana replied with a small shiver, mindful of her handful of flames. 

** **

“Come on!” Merlin directed them down a small set of narrow stairs. They moved slowly, very conscious of the goblin trapped in its box, the last thing they needed was to drop it now and re-release it. 

** **

Eventually they made it down, and wandered together a little way through the caves. It was so much larger than Morgana had imagined, with turrets of stone climbing to the roof, some of which seemed scorched, remnants of the dragon who had dwelt here so long. 

** **

They found a small cave just off to the side, in which they carefully laid the box, on which Merlin had scrawled across the fact that it contained a Very Dangerous Goblin, Do Not Open, in case of anyone coming across it by accident. Then, as an added precaution, Merlin and herself had cast plenty of protective spells across the small cave, hiding it from view. 

** **

They stepped back to admire their handiwork. 

** **

“Is it over then?” Arthur asked them, his voice echoing around the cave. 

** **

“I believe so,” Merlin said, grinning a bit, and sitting down on a raised clump of stone. 

** **

Gwen was still admiring the cave. “I’ve had an idea,” She said suddenly, turning to them. They turned to look at her. “You can’t just practice your magic in Gaius’s rooms, I know some servants are already talking a little about how much time Morgana spends up there already-”

** **

“They are?” Morgana interrupted, surprised. 

** **

Gwen looked a little embarrassed. “Sorry, My lady.”

** **

“Go on!” Merlin encouraged, seemingly unbothered by any gossip. 

** **

“Well,” Gwen continued, “What about here?”

** **

“What about here?” Arthur said, baffled. 

** **

“We could practice magic down here,” Merlin said slowly, his eyes lighting up. “It would be perfect.”

** **

Arthur began to grin as well, and looked about the cave as well, seeming to be trying to take it in as a magic training ground. “That could work.”

** **

“It’s perfect,” Morgana said decisively. “We should meet back here tomorrow, see how it works.”

** **

This was going to be amazing. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spells used: 
> 
> Culter, ic þe healte - Dagger, I stop you  
Astrice - Strike
> 
> I'm always stunned by the fact that there are people who seem to be enjoying this story, I have so much planned out for this, and I can't wait to get on to some of the stuff!  
Thank you so much to everyone who's left kudos or commented! It really does mean a lot! :)
> 
> Up next...Gwaine enters


	5. Tournaments and Crystals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I am so sorry for the late upload, I wasn't entirely happy with this chapter for a while and kept going back and editing it, and then...I completely forgot to upload it. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy! :D

** Chapter 5: Tournaments and Crystals **

Morgause was alone. 

She had taken up residence in the halls on the Isle of the Blessed some time ago, her childhood home, now merely a ghost of its former glory. Where there had once been light, joy and magic, now there was a cold, dead silence, hollowing out the air, lengthening the shadows. 

There were few rooms that were habitable any more, and she had vowed to herself that she would not let any more fall into ruin. The room she had made truly her own, the room that had indeed once been her own, was still not quite as it should be. There was a coldness that lingered, no matter what she did. 

There wasn’t enough magic in the air, there weren’t enough _people_. In their place was a hollowness that echoed out. 

She had done her best. In the centre of the room was a basin, similar to one birds might drink from, made from stone, and indeed, filled with water. Her scrying bowl. 

The room was lit from three torches, that floated in the air, casting a warm, flickering light across the room. 

She stood by the bowl but wasn’t intent on scrying just now. She absentmindedly stirred the waters with a finger, causing the water to swirl about in a circular motion. 

How had her attack failed? 

She had attacked Camelot at a point that it should have been weak. It should have fallen, and by now Cenred should be the king of both Essetir and Camelot, and the Pendragons should be rotting underground, fading to a memory, a legend of Camelot’s tyrannical king. 

By now, the ban on magic should be lifted, and all those with magic would be free. 

At that, she straightened, and strode out the room, needing something to distract her of what could have been. There was no purpose in it, she had realised that long ago. 

But there was nothing to distract her, and everything she saw merely fuelled her ever burning fury. There she had cast her first spell, and there she had seen her first vision, and just there was where she and her friend, who had been in training as a priestess alongside her, had played together as children, when magic had been merely a game, a toy to be played with. 

All gone. 

She was alone. 

And she needed to fix this. She would fix it all, bring back magic, bring back _everything_. And to do that, she needed to know what had gone wrong. 

Someone, some _traitor_ to the cause, had used magic to protect Camelot, to protect people that would see them killed without mercy. That was the only conclusion she had been able to come to. She had tried to think of anything else, but it was the only thing that made sense, even if it sickened her. 

How could anyone betray them like that? 

So, there was someone in Camelot with magic. Someone loyal to Camelot. 

Morgana was the first to jump to mind, but Morgause dismissed the idea easily. Morgana would not have mastered her magic by now, she would still be weak, it took a great deal of training, and that was simply impossible. So, someone else then. 

And that was where she was falling short. 

She didn’t have all the information, and she didn’t like it. Somehow, she needed to find out. 

It couldn’t be done alone. So, a spy perhaps. 

It shouldn’t be too difficult, to find someone willing to scout around and find someone with magic. It was Camelot after all, why shouldn’t she turn their fear of magic against them? 

Let it be their downfall. 

Now, just to find the right person. Someone with loose morals, someone able to be overlooked, someone preferably close to a Pendragon. Someone easily bought. 

She stood and began preparations to leave. 

* * *

The tavern was bustling, and Gwaine liked it. He sat back in his chair and gulped down the tankard in his hand. It wasn’t perhaps the best quality he had ever had, but it was certainly drinkable, and therefore it deserved to be drunk. 

He was starting to get a little bored, and called over for another tankard, which appeared before him soon enough, alongside a slightly concerned look from the bar keeper, who seemed a little worried about the amount he was drinking, particularly as he was alone. 

She didn’t comment though, and he was paying, so it didn’t bother him much. 

The doors opened again, and in came two figures, a blond man striding in, taking in the tavern with a glance, before seating himself at the table. 

He had the confidence Gwaine would expect from either a regular to the tavern, who knew it well, or a noble. No noble would be caught dead associating with the common people, well, him aside, and he wasn’t a noble by pretty much all standards, so it was safe to assume the former. 

Beside him was a younger looking man, with very distinctive black hair, a muted red neckerchief, and a bright blue shirt. He was clearly being dragged in by his friend, as he had a slightly resigned look as he took in the tavern, with its usual bustling crowd of drunks and a few people gambling cheerfully in the corner. 

Gwaine hadn’t noticed them before, that could be fun.

They took their seats, and Gwaine moved his attention elsewhere. 

He had another drink, and was halfway through his next, and was starting to contemplate something that felt very important, when the doors were shoved open again. He turned to see the new person. There was a hush as the man strode inside, and began to demand money from the bar keeper, and Gwaine couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. This was exactly the sort of arrogant, overbearing behaviour he loathed. Before he could stand however, the blond man had risen. 

Things quickly began to spiral out of control from there, and Gwaine threw himself into the fray delightedly. He found himself beside the dark-haired man, who was throwing plates at the attackers at a quite shocking speed. 

“Pass the jug, huh,” Gwaine panted a little at him. The bloke looked surprised at being addressed, and wordlessly handed over one of the jugs. Gwaine took a gulp, and then saw the man’s eyes widen, and start a warning, Gwaine turned to see an attacker lunge at him, and aimed a quick punch to the face, causing his would-be attacker to collapse to the ground. 

He took another gulp from the jug and turned back to the dark-haired man to resume their conversation which had been so rudely interrupted. “So, what do they call you then?”

“Merlin,” The man said with a small grin. 

“Gwaine,” He introduced himself, holding out a hand which Merlin shook, “Pleasure to meet you-”

“GWAINE!” Merlin yelped, jumping back, Gwaine spun around, and smashed his jug into another would-be attacker, causing it to shatter everywhere, and the attacker to join his comrade on the floor at his feet. 

“Such a waste, huh?” Gwaine commented to the man, who was looking a little taken aback. Evidently not a regular for tavern brawls. 

The blond man seemed to be putting up a good fight, but suddenly his attacker drew out a knife, and before Gwaine could consider whether this was really the best cause of action, he flung himself at the man, knocking him to the ground. 

There was suddenly really rather a lot of pain. Primarily in his leg. Even so, he attempted to stand, and managed to get a look at whatever was causing it. Ah.

Well on the bright side, at least the man no longer had a knife. Pity that it came at the cost of sheathing it into Gwaine’s leg. 

And then he found himself falling backwards, and felt his head explode as it hit the ground. 

He was wavering in an out of consciousness. Someone was carrying him, he tried to complain, and then it went dark again. 

He was outside, and he could hear the sounds of vegetables flying, hitting their target. 

He was on the back of a horse, and he tried again to complain, there was a blonde woman who was watching him carefully, looking so thoroughly out of place outside the tavern. Then the darkness took him under yet again. 

* * *

When he had awoken again, he had been in a strange room. Small, comfortable, with a faint smell of herbs lingering. There had been a think coverlet across him, and his leg was plastered in a paste, and bandaged. 

He’d had enough time to take in the weirdness of the situation, when the door creaked open, revealing the dark-haired man from the pub. 

Gwaine could not remember his name. He had mentioned it, but his head really was hurting quite a bit, and his leg was throbbing, and he couldn’t really focus enough on the memory. 

It was a bird name, he was fairly sure, like Sparrow. Or Hawk. 

Gwaine was going to call him Sparrow until he could remember what it actually was. He was also carrying a tray of food, a very much redeemable feature. “Arthur wanted to make sure you were treated,” He informed him.

Um. “Arthur?”

Sparrow looked surprised. “_Prince_ Arthur. You saved his life.”

_You have got to be kidding_. “If I’d known who he was, I probably wouldn’t,” Gwaine sighed, arranging the pillows behind him to be a little more comfortable to let him sit up. Sparrow looked uncomprehending. “He’s a noble,” Gwaine clarified for him. Sparrow seemed to relax a little and passed him the tray of food. 

_Seriously, what was his name?_

“Yeah, but he’s a good man.”

Gwaine chuckled at that. He had long since learned never to trust the good side of nobility, it only ever lasted while times were good. Sparrow would probably learn that soon enough. 

“If you say so.” 

“You’re a hero,” Sparrow said. Was that admiration? “The king wants to thank you in person.”

Gwaine choked on the water he had been drinking. “Please no,” He said, once he could talk again, “I’ve met my fair share of kings. Once you’ve met one, you’ve met them all.”  
He noticed something then. At the mention of the king, Sparrow’s lips had tightened, just a little. Gwaine couldn’t help the sneaking suspicion that Sparrow wasn’t perhaps, quite as in thrall to the nobility as he seemed. 

He did seem surprised by Gwaine’s refusal though. 

“He’d probably give you a reward,” Sparrow said, seeming to be trying to convince him. 

“Not interested.” The dark-haired man seemed a little taken aback. “Besides,” Gwaine continued, “I’ve got everything I need right here.” He patted his trusty bag, hanging up beside him. 

Sparrow seemed to concede the point, and grinned at him, before cocking his head in a very birdlike manner. “Why did you help us?”

Gwaine laughed. “Your chances looked between slim and none,” He shrugged, “I guess I like the look of those odds.” 

The dark-haired man stared at him in a slightly bemused manner, before breaking into a resigned sort of grin, and shook his head, seeming to be restraining a laugh. 

“Between you and me,” Sparrow said, tone changing a little. It was no longer quite so subservient, more just friendly, “You’re probably right to turn down a reward from the king.”

He...had not expected that reaction. “How come?”

“Because,” Sparrow sighed, dragging a hand through his hair, “Well. I sort of...saved Arthur’s life before, and it happened to be in front of the king, so he announced to everyone I deserved a reward, I did say no, but he just sort of ignored me,” Sparrow was grinning reminiscently, “And just said, `Nonsense!’,” He put on a slightly lower, more pompous tone to his voice, “‘You shall be Arthur’s manservant!’ And then he just sort of walked off. And I was given the job,” Merlin shrugged. “I still don’t understand that logic.”  
  
  


Gwaine laughed. “Sounds like I should run to escape a similar reward.”

Sparrow grinned back, before glancing out the window. “Oh no, I’m late. See you later!” He called, as he dashed out the room again. 

Gwaine shook his head, still grinning. If he had to be somewhere, this didn’t seem too bad. He helped himself to the bowl of porridge that the man had brought in. 

He really should find out what his name actually was. 

* * *

Morgana checked one last time, making sure there was no one around, before pulling the hood of her cloak over her head more securely, before making her way to the caves the dragon had once lived in. 

The street was bustling with people readying themselves for the tournament later, and no one paid her much attention, which worked well for her. She felt slightly giddy, she had rarely done anything like this so blatantly, but she kept herself together, keeping a careful eye out, before hurrying down the steps into the cave, and then down the next set to the cave floor. 

It seemed she had arrived before Merlin, and so she took a seat on a rock, and began to practice on her own. 

_“Bebiede þe arisan”_ A small trio of pebbles rose into the air, and she held out her hand, rotating her wrist in lazy circular movements that the pebbles responded to, spinning about themselves in similar circular movements in the air. She grinned as they spun aimlessly through the air, spiralling higher and higher. 

“That looks good!” 

She jumped, and as she lost concentration, the pebbles fell to the ground, clattering against the floor and scattering away. She turned to glare at Merlin, who had arrived quietly and was looking sheepishly at her over a small pile of books. 

“Make some noise, won’t you! You startled me.”

“Sorry,” Merlin said, although he didn’t seem too apologetic, “So what book should we start with?”

He laid them out on a flat rock. Morgana leaned in to read, but it was impossible to see the words. She raised her hand in the air_. “Léoht” _A small ball of warm glowing light expanded above them, seeming to hover a little way above her head. She leaned in again to read and was startled when the ball of light followed. Cautiously, she moved her head back and forth a little, and to her slight dismay, it followed suit. “Ah.”

Merlin grinned at her, but seeing her expression, seemed to decide not to comment. “I was thinking, we could start with this one?” He suggested instead, pointing at a slim volume, with a green dyed leather binding, and no title. Instead the cover had an intricate, if faded, design of a tree, branches bare on one side, and covered in different fruit on the other, the whole design encompassed in a circle. Curious, she opened it. The title page was inside, _“The theory of magic in life.”_

She turned the page, looking over it curiously. 

“It’s spells that are meant to be more day to day,” Merlin explained, “I thought that might be good to know.”

“Yeah, absolutely,” Morgana agreed readily. “So, which should we start with?”

* * *

Gwaine was bored. 

He felt perfectly fine, and the other man, Gaius, he was pretty sure, seemed to mostly agree, except that he was insisting that Gwaine take things easy for a while, and to keep the paste on his leg.

Well, that was all perfectly well, except that it was incredibly _boring_. 

What the hell. He stood up, stretched, and winced a little. He tested his weight on his leg, and grinned as it held up. 

Carefully, he made his way downstairs, where Gaius was grinding up herbs with far more brutality than Gwaine would have expected in a... well, in an older fellow. 

“Leaving so soon?” Gaius asked, turning on him with a quizzical eyebrow. 

Gwaine shrugged, “Wasn’t planning on leaving permanently just yet, just wanted to stretch my legs.” 

“Be sure not to stretch that leg too much now,” Gaius said warningly, turning back to his herbs. 

Gwaine grinned to himself, before heading out the door. It had been a while since anyone had cared about his health, not counting the occasional bartender. It was a nice change. 

He made his way into the bustling streets, and took in the sights around him, smiling a bit. It was apparently market day, and according to a man shouting loudly, there was to be a tournament soon. A few gawkers were listening intently, but Gwaine was watching the vendors, and began to weave about the stalls, browsing the various wares on offer. 

Camelot didn’t seem too bad, really. 

Then someone crashed into him, a really very pretty woman in a faded purple dress. He grinned and flirted, until he realised her disinterest, and let it go easily. 

He watched her leave for a moment, before turning back to the stalls around. There were still so many things he could do. 

He wandered aimlessly around the stalls for a while longer, before making the decision to head back to the castle. May as well explore while it seemed he had free rein.

The castle was bustling as well, servants hurrying about, more than he would have expected. 

Then he came to a corridor, overlooking a courtyard with a large well, entirely deserted. He leaned against the railings, just watching for a moment. 

“Gwaine, isn’t it?” 

He spun around and winced as he felt his leg throb. There was a woman standing at the far end of the corridor, with long, blonde hair, and a long, deep red dress. She stood with confidence, most likely some noble from Camelot. Maybe this was Morgana? She seemed to match what little he knew about her, beautiful, and living in Camelot. Admittedly that wasn’t much.

She seemed familiar. _Where had he seen her before?_

“It is,” He replied, warily. “And who might you be?” 

She seemed to take this as an invitation, walking closer to him, until they were both by the railing. 

While it was illogical, he couldn’t help but suddenly notice just how easy it would be for her to push him over the side. He dismissed the thought, that was ridiculous. 

“I hear that you saved Prince Arthur’s life,” She commented, raising an eyebrow a little, making it seem almost a question. 

“I’ve heard that too.” 

She seemed slightly taken off guard at that. “So, it isn’t true?”

“No, it’s true,” Gwaine laughed, leaning back against the railing carelessly, “I just didn’t realise who he was until I woke up in his physicians’ room.”

“I see.” The woman wasn’t looking at him, she was gazing out at the courtyard. “Tell me, Gwaine,” She said, turning to him suddenly, fixing him with a steely look, “Would you be willing to take up a task for me?” 

“Depends on the task…” Gwaine said, warily. 

“It’s very simple,” She said easily, resting her elbow on the stone railing, one hand cupping her chin, “I need you to find someone in Camelot. I believe they mean to cause a great deal of harm. Perhaps they intend to use the melee to their advantage.” 

“Right…”

“I have found some information. I believe there to be a magic user in the heart of Camelot. Whoever they are, they are close to the prince. I need someone to find out who they are, judge whether they are a threat, and then to report to me.”

Oh, she did, did she?

“I’m not interested,” Gwaine said, firmly. 

“You would be rewarded,” She assured him, “Greatly, I’m sure.” 

_Why was everyone trying to give him a reward?_

“Listen,” Gwaine said, not budging, “I’m not some spy. And I’m not the prince’s carer. I’m not interested.” 

She raised her eyebrows. “Aren’t you? There is someone using _magic_, in _Camelot_. I’m not expecting you to _work _for me, just to keep an eye out, and let me know if you _happen_ to notice anything.”

Ah yes. Magic. In Camelot. He’d forgotten about that, magic was so strictly prohibited here. Well, he wasn’t going to be responsible for some poor person’s execution. 

“I’ve already told you I’m not interested. Find someone else, or better, do it yourself if you want it done so badly. “

She looked thoroughly displeased, and straightened up, as Gwaine turned from her, striding away. 

Still though. That was interesting. He had no intention of reporting anything to that woman, but he couldn’t help but look at every person as he passed them, any one of them could be the mysterious sorcerer. 

But it really wasn’t his problem.

He turned, heading back out to the town. He really ought to investigate the local taverns. 

* * *

Gwaine ought to have known it would happen eventually. 

Just for a moment though, he had hoped that things would be different. 

Apparently not though, and it was never good to dwell on could haves. 

It was that stupid Melee. That thug he’d been stabbed by at the tavern where he’s met Merlin and Arthur, had taken on the identity of a knight, and attempted to murder Arthur. 

He had, for once, stepped in, tried to help. Not because he was bored, not because he had nothing better to do, although that was probably true, but because he had genuinely grown to like Merlin, when he’s learned his name, and he couldn’t help a grudging respect for Arthur. 

Although, at least he was pretty sure he had solved one mystery. He was confident he knew who the woman’s mysterious sorcerer was now, and if he was right, then he could be fairly sure that he was most certainly not planning any harm to Arthur. 

But now, here he was, standing before Uther on his throne. Arthur was beside him, and arguing furiously, and a dark-haired woman Gwaine didn’t recognise, but who was obviously a noble, who was looking furious. 

The court as a whole had been emptied, except for the four of them. Gwaine wasn’t quite sure what he was meant to be doing at this point. He was fairly sure he was meant to be kneeling, the guards had pushed him to his knees, but when the woman had started to disagree with the king, they had all been sent out, allowing Gwaine to just stand up again. 

He didn’t really have anything to say in his defence that hadn’t already been said, and he was fairly sure that even if he were to point out anything then he would just be ignored, so he was mostly just sitting back and watching the three arguing about his fate. 

“He saved Arthur’s life! Twice! You cannot banish him!” The woman declared furiously.

“He attacked a knight! This cannot go unpunished,” Uther retaliated, his voice steady, but rising slightly. 

“Father, he deserves clemency, the knights in question were only masquerading as knights, surely in the light of that-”  
  
  


“It is the principle of the matter!” Uther’s face was starting to go a little red.

“The principle? The _principle_?” The woman had stood up, and drawn herself to her full height, “No, this is _unjust! _This man,” She flung her arm out to gesture at Gwaine, standing in the middle of the empty room, he hurriedly tried to arrange his expression to something appropriate, “Saved the life of_ your son_, if it were not for him, Arthur would not be standing here today!”

Arthur glanced slightly irritably at the woman, clearly a little offended at the announcement that he wouldn’t have been able to look after himself, but visibly swallowed his pride, taking a deep breath before turning back to Uther. “She’s right,” It looked as if the words pained him very slightly, “I owe my life to him. I cannot stand by while he is punished.” 

Uther was looking between them, before looking at Gwaine. He was still looking furious, but his colouring had gone back to normal. “Very well.” He said tightly, “In light of his actions, his banishment shall be rescinded.”

* * *

Merlin leaned against the wall. He didn’t look like a powerful sorcerer, or even any kind of sorcerer, but Gwaine was reasonably certain. 

When he noticed Gwaine leaving the room, Merlin leaped up again. “What’s happened? Are you still banished?” He looked as if it mattered a great deal, whether Gwaine left or stayed. It was nice, for a change. 

“Nah, he rescinded it ‘in light of my actions’,” Gwaine said, carelessly, grinning widely. Merlin’s expression cleared, he looked delighted. 

“Oh good! Did he try to reward you?” He joked. 

Gwaine let out a quick bark of laughter. “No,” He said, still smiling, “No he did not, thankfully.”

“So, what are you going to do now?” 

That was the question. “I was thinking I might go travel elsewhere, I doubt the king will exactly be pleased if I stick around in his castle. And I never stay in one place long. People tend to get sick of me after a while,” He laughed. 

Merlin frowned a little, the smile fading to confusion. “I didn’t.” He looked serious. 

“Huh.” It wasn’t exactly adequate, but he was a little at a loss for what to say. 

“So why don’t you stay?” Merlin asked earnestly. 

Gwaine tried to imagine it. Staying in one place. Staying here. Well, he doubted the tavern would be pleased for him to be a repeat customer. The king wouldn’t want him to stay in the castle, he’d have to find a _house _somewhere. And then a job…he didn’t see how it could work. 

“You could be a knight, like your father,” Merlin pushed a little, “You’d just have to say who he was. Then Arthur would let you become a knight.”

He tried to imagine that. Serving Uther in Pendragon red, riding on a horse in a suit of armour, charging out to nobly defend Camelot. He nearly laughed at the implausibility. 

“No,” He shook his head, “No I don’t think I could ever serve under a man like Uther.”

“Then what do you think you’ll do?” 

He took a deep breath. “I was thinking I’ll go to Mercia. “

“It’s dangerous,” Merlin pointed out. 

“Yeah, well,” Gwaine grinned and shrugged, “Might be interesting. And hey,” He gave a laugh, “I can always come back to Camelot later.”

Merlin smiled at that. “I’ll be seeing you then.” 

Gwaine huffed a laugh, “Yeah, I’ll see you around.” 

With that, he turned, and made his way out the door, on to the next adventure. 

Someday, probably soon, he was going to come back.

* * *

Merlin scanned the undergrowth carefully. 

Gaius had sent him out for a special type of herb to replenish their store, so far though, the search had proven fruitless. 

“How long is this going to take?” Morgana asked irritably. 

Merlin wasn’t actually sure why Morgana was there. She had been going for a ride, and they’d run into each other in the woods, and now she seemed to be waiting for him. While the company was nice, he was honestly not entirely certain what she was intending. 

He looked about further, before moving onwards, always scanning the floor for the distinctive yellow tinged, pointed leaves. 

  
  


The next thing he knew, he was falling, when he’d taken a step while looking at the floor, and the floor hadn’t been there.

He tumbled downwards, crashing into the undergrowth, until he finally stopped. Gingerly, he sat up, and checked himself over. 

“Are you alright?” Morgana called, sounding anxious now. Her head loomed above him, as she had dismounted and was now looking down the bank at him, sprawled out in the bracken. 

His sleeve was ripped, and there were a few small scrapes of blood on the skin where he’d grazed it as he’d fallen, his knee was screaming, and was bloodied. Oh, he wouldn't hear the end of this for a long time, the most powerful warlock, brought low by an unexpected hill. 

He pulled off his neckerchief, appropriately red today, and wrapped his knee, where the bleeding was worst. He got to his feet carefully and made his way to where he could hear a stream and began to splash the water gently over the cuts. 

“What are you doing?” 

Merlin spun around, to see a figure standing by him. He hadn’t heard him approach. “Who are you?” He and Morgana spoke at the same time. 

She quickly made her way down to join them, as carefully as she could. 

“Do not be afraid,” The man said, smiling a little. He was a little old to be a bandit. He looked almost friendly. “I simply knew that this was the place I should be.” 

Merlin frowned, as he tied the neckerchief around his leg as a crude bandage. “Right…”

“Come. There is something I believe you should see.” 

“What is it?” Morgana said, as Merlin was getting to his feet, although with no real intention of following. 

“Come.” With that, the man turned, and headed away. 

Merlin hesitated. 

“You’re not seriously going to follow, are you?” Morgana asked in disbelief. 

“I want to know what’s happening! And I mean, does he look like a bandit to you?” 

“No, but-” Morgana broke off uncertainly, looking at the man uncertainly. 

“I’m going to see what it is, you don’t have to come,” Merlin decided, before he followed along, a little warily. Morgana followed behind him after a moment’s deliberation.

The man lead him to a cave, and began to stride in. Merlin however, stopped. 

“Where are you taking me?” 

“This is a place you need to come to,” The man said patiently, turning to Merlin with a smile. “It is time you saw what you need to see. This is the place you are meant to be.”

“Meant to be?” Morgana questioned warily. 

“Yeah, I’m not really interested,” Merlin said, frowning, on the same trail of thought, “When you say I’m _meant to be _here...it sounds an awful lot like _destiny_, and... I’m not so sure I like destiny’s plans much.”  
  


“I know I don’t,” Morgana said quietly.  
  


“Come,” The man did not seem upset by either pronouncement, and turned, making his way into the cave. 

Merlin deliberated for a moment. He was going to regret this. But curiosity egged him on, he took a deep breath, and followed, and heard Morgana just behind him. 

He came out inside a huge cavern, glittering with crystals that shone a bright, glimmering blue, casting light about the cave like light reflected on water, and heard Morgana’s sharp intake of breath. He could feel the magic swirling about the room, a feeling similar to that of coming home after a long journey, except that he had never seen anything like this room before. 

“What is this place?” His voice was quieter than he meant it to be. 

“This is the crystal cave,” The man said. He stood by the crystals, and he gave them an encouraging smile. “Look into the crystals. They will tell you what you need to know.” 

Merlin glanced towards a pile of the crystals, seeming to have grown up from the ground. 

_Morgana, unconscious, lying on a bed, her hair scattered across the pillow, Arthur standing by her, face pale-_

“No!” Merlin tore his eyes away and gazed at the man in horror. “What is this?” 

“Look into the crystals.” 

“I did-”  
  


“Look further. The future is hidden but to a few, Emrys.”

He jumped at that. “How do you know that name?” 

“I know many things. Look into the crystals. There is a reason you would be brought here at a particular time.” 

Merlin shook his head slowly. “I don’t…” 

“Use what you see for the good of your friends.” 

Morgana was staring deep into the crystals beside him. “This is like my nightmares,” She said shakily, before rounding on the man. “Are we seeing the _future?”_ She demanded, sounding furious. 

“What you see is a line of consequences. From your decisions, these events may, or may not come to pass.” 

“But you’re not telling us how to avoid any of it!” Morgana said furiously, “How are we supposed to use what we see for good if we don’t know the full picture?” 

“That is not my place.” The man said gently. 

For Merlin, it felt that their conversation was reaching him from a great distance. Then he took a deep breath and _looked_. 

_The dragon soured about the mountain, Balinor watched Kilgharrah as he flew with an unreadable expression, Morgause was talking to Cenred over a goblet of wine, smiling malevolently, a camp of druids, where a boy with a shock of black hair, and pale blue eyes watched solemnly, Merlin himself riding on a horse, eyes wide with panic, Morgana lying unconscious on a bed, Gwen crying, Arthur’s face drained of colour-_

Merlin ripped his gaze away, but the crystals were everywhere, he turned away from one pile, only to be faced by another, and another, and everywhere, the same images.

“MERLIN! Morgana was beside him, as he sank to his knees, eyes closing as he focused on just breathing. 

Finally, he opened his eyes again. The man was gone. They were alone in the cave. 

“Let’s go,” Morgana said firmly, gripping his arm.

Careful not to look at any of the crystals, he made his way quickly out the cave, into the sunlight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spells Used:  
Bebiede þe arisan - I command you to rise  
Léoht - light/daylight/power of vision/luminary world
> 
> I wanted to just clarify things here, I really do want to show that their future is determined by their choices in this story, rather then by destiny, I'm not planning on having it that no matter what they do, it's all just going to happen because a prophesy said it would. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed that chapter, I loved writing Gwaine so much, he will be returning XD
> 
> Thanks again to everyone leaving kudos and commenting, it really does mean a lot! :D
> 
> Next up... Gwen is annoyed with Merlin, and people finally go to see the druids...


	6. If we ignore our problems, they might leave us alone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that was a much longer break between updates then I had expected XD Hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 6: If we ignore our problems, they might leave us alone**

  
  


Merlin knocked rapidly on Gwen’s door, before shoving it open without waiting for the response. 

  
  


“Gwen,” He began rapidly, bursting inside, “There’s a massive problem, I think Morgana’s going to die, or at least get injured, and I’m not sure why, or when, or how, but I saw it in a crystal and I don’t know what to do-”

  
  


He glanced around the room, his voice trailing off. “Gwen?” He asked the empty room. 

  
  


Nothing. 

  
  


Oops. 

  
  


The door opened, he spun around, as he heard a small yelp of surprise, before Gwen realised it was him. 

  
  


“Merlin? Why are you in my house?”

  
  


“Gwen? Why _aren’t you_ in your house?”

  
  


Gwen stared at him, open mouthed for a moment, before giving her head a quick shake, and stepped inside, closing the door behind her. “I do have a job!” She reminded him. 

  
  


“Yeah, well, I have something important to tell you.” He quickly caught her up with the events in the crystal cave. 

  
  


“What are we going to do?” Gwen asked him, when he was done. Her eyes had grown a great deal larger as she took in what he said. 

  
  


“I don’t know!” Merlin said, throwing up his arms in the air, nearly knocking over a small vase. “Maybe, let’s just keep an eye on Morgana, make sure she’s alright?”

  
  


Gwen sighed, “For how long? Did you get any idea of when any of this is meant to happen?”

  
  


Merlin’s eyes widened. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t even thought about that. “I have no idea,” He said anxiously. He began pacing up and down the room. “Ok, ok, so, we just have to keep an eye on her-”

  
  


“Merlin.”

  
  


“-Of course, you need to talk to her as well, make sure she doesn’t do anything really risky or anything-”

  
  


“Merlin!”

  
  


“-And I’ll just, I don’t know, maybe I can learn some protective magic-”

  
  


“MERLIN!” 

  
  


Merlin jumped as Gwen placed a hand on his shoulder. “Merlin, you have to calm down,” She said firmly. “Things go wrong when you, or anyone really, just charges out to deal with a problem. We need to think about this. Where is Morgana now?” 

  
  


Merlin took a deep breath, trying to force his thoughts to slow, to arrange themselves in a better order. “She went back to the castle, she needed to get her horse back to the stables.”

  
  


“Does she know what you saw?” 

  
  


Now there was a question. “I... don’t know,” He said thoughtfully. “I didn’t really say anything, but I think she may have seen it herself in the crystals. I don’t know exactly.” 

  
  


“Ok,” Gwen said standing a little straighter, “So that’s what we do first. We tell her what’s happened. And then we tell Arthur, he needs to know as well. And we _do no_t do anything drastic right now.”

  
  


Merlin stopped pacing, and stared at her thoughtfully for a moment, thinking it over. Then he darted to the door. “Ok, I’ll do that! Thanks Gwen!” 

  
  


The door swung shut behind him, leaving Gwen alone in her house. 

  
  


* * *

  
  
  


Morgana sighed irritably. “I am going to be _fine,”_ She said to Merlin. 

  
  


“If he saw the future,” Arthur pointed out worriedly, “Then maybe he has a point-”

  
  


“What exactly do you wish to do, even if what he saw was accurate?” Morgana demanded, throwing her hands in the air in sheer frustration, “We don’t know what the threat is, we don’t know when it should happen or even why! There’s no conceivable way to protect me from every potential harmful event, so we might as well just carry on as we are!”  
  
  


Arthur looked as if he wanted to argue and wasn’t sure how to. Morgana sighed, and turned to the window, tossing her hair over her shoulder. 

She was fed up with prophesies. They just got in the way. 

  
  


She’d rather lost confidence in them since she found out that one had declared her as evil. 

  
  


No, they needed to do something else. They needed to move on, assume nothing would happen, and maybe ask Gaius to stock up his herb stores just in case. 

  
  


“Right.” Arthur said, sounding a little uncertain, “Well, in that case-”  
  
  


“We should go see the druids,” Morgana said suddenly. She had been thinking about it for a while, and they had simply not gotten around to it yet. Balinor had suggested it, not actually that long ago, and she could do with a distraction from her potential near death. 

  
  


“The...what?” Arthur gaped at her. 

  
  


“Oh, that’s actually a good idea,” Merlin said, perking up, “Maybe we could ask them about the whole crystal cave thing!”  
  
  


Not quite what she was after, but it would get them out the castle. “Precisely!” She agreed, enthusiastically. “Alright, well-”  
  
  


“No, one moment,” Arthur was looking between them uncertainly, “What exactly is going on? Why do you want to see druids?” 

  
  


“Well, Balinor says that there’s only so much that we can learn from books,” Morgana began to explain. 

  
  


“And it would be really good to be able to discuss the whole bringing back magic and restoring Albion thing, because, I don’t know about you, but I’m not entirely sure how that’s supposed to happen, I mean, I guess you repeal the ban, but then what?” Merlin looked as if he was going to continue, but then Morgana noticed Arthur. His expression was becoming slightly pinched.

  
  


“Anyway,” Morgana cut in, not sure what exactly Merlin had said to provoke such a reaction, but keen to move on, “We really ought to go see the druids. Can’t be that hard to find them.” 

  
  


“Ok,” Arthur agreed, visibly pulling himself together, “I suppose we’re off to see the druids then.” 

  
  


* * *

  
  


They rode out together. 

  
  


Arthur rode on his black stallion, Hengroen, Morgana beside him on her own horse. 

Merlin and Gwen rode on behind them, and Arthur could hear them talking together quietly, and occasionally laughing, and he couldn’t help but suspect that whatever they were joking about, it was probably not entirely flattering for him. 

  
  


He sighed and focused on the path ahead. 

  
  


“Alright,” Morgana said finally, “What’s up?” 

  
  


Arthur looked over in surprise. Morgana had one eyebrow raised, in a manner slightly too reminiscent of Gaius, and was clearly waiting impatiently for an answer. 

“Nothing,” He replied, firmly. 

  
  


“Don’t give me that,” She snapped, “You might as well tell me. Why are you acting so strangely? Well, stranger than usual.” 

  
  


He snorted at that, and then sighed. “I just…” He tried to think how to explain it, “I just feel that we must be missing something.”  
  
  


“In what way?” 

  
  


“I mean, it was just when Merlin spoke so openly about repealing the ban...I absolutely think it needs to be repealed,” He added hurriedly, seeing Morgana’s expression starting to change, “But I also...I really don’t know how to...do any of it. There are a lot of sorcerers out there who would wish harm on people who I care about, just because I care about them, or because my father cared about them in revenge for the ban. And there’s so much bad feeling towards people with magic, how am I meant to combat it all? It was one thing when it’s just you and Merlin, I trust you both, but how am I meant to help _everyone?_” 

  
  


Morgana looked contemplative. “I don’t know,” She said finally, “But maybe we need to start thinking about that more seriously. Perhaps we should talk it over with the druids, or with Balinor. He at least would remember the time before the purge, and he worked in Camelot, so he’s likely to know how magic was dealt with before.”

  
  


Arthur sat up a little straighter. _How had he forgotten Balinor?_ “That’s not an entirely terrible idea,” He said slowly. 

Morgana huffed a little, but he saw her smiling slightly as they continued on. 

  
  


They had searched through one of the books they had found in the hidden library room and had found a book similar to a diary. Arthur had struggled greatly to read the scrawling handwriting and given it to Merlin to translate to something legible. It had seemed to be a record about the common routes for a particular druid camp, why exactly it had been made, he wasn’t so sure, and chances were that the routes would have changed now, but as it was their only lead, they were heading out to a possible location in the forest. 

  
  


It had rather worried Arthur, as the location was rather close to a serket colony, which was particularly worrying given the heightened likelihood of Morgana’s imminent death. He had tried to insist, but she had argued furiously, he had threatened to lock her up, she had reminded him that she had magic and could break out, he had said she couldn’t without revealing herself, she had dared him to try, and see what she was willing to do.

So, he’d given in, and here she was, and Merlin had stocked up on healing herbs. 

  
  


Now just to find the damn place. 

  
  


He had honestly not thought it would be as difficult as it was turning out to be. 

  
  


They had been riding around for...oh who even knew how long, when he finally halted, and spun around so that he could address Merlin and Morgana. 

  
  


“Is there any way that you guys can find the druids?” He said exasperatedly, “Like, some kind of magic thing?”

  
  


Morgana frowned a little, clearly thinking about it. “Maybe…” She said uncertainly, before suddenly glancing back at Merlin. “Wait, what about the mind speech? You managed to initiate it when we dealt with that goblin a while back, I kept meaning to ask how you did that, but could you send out a message to druids around?” 

  
  


Merlin looked intrigued. “I... don’t know. I don’t really know how I did it before, really, but I could try.” 

  
  


Arthur watched in slight bafflement. He had no idea what they were talking about, but he was sure he would find out soon if it was important. If it could help now, then he was willing to let them try whatever it was they were doing. 

  
  


Merlin closed his eyes in concentration. Arthur shared a look with Gwen, who seemed equally baffled as he was, and gave a small uncertain smile, and a confused shrug. 

Suddenly Morgana jumped, and then closed her eyes as well. 

  
  


Arthur waited with bated breath, until the two opened their eyes in unison. Merlin was grinning widely. “Yep,” He confirmed, “They’re here. One said he would come out to lead us to the camp.”

  
  


“How do you know that?” Arthur asked worriedly. 

  
  


Merlin looked at him as if he was a bit slow. It was unnerving to see that expression on Merlin’s face. “Mind speech,” Merlin said, slowly. 

  
  


“Right, you _said_,” Arthur explained sarcastically, “But you _may _have left out the minor detail of what _exactly _‘Mind Speech’ entails.”

  
  


“Oh!” Merlin brightened up at that, “People with magic can communicate telepathically!”

  
  


Right. Of course. Why wouldn’t people with magic be telepathic. Why not. 

  
  


“Can they,” Arthur said slightly weakly. “Can they indeed. Wonderful.”

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Gwen giving him a slightly worried look, and he quickly focused on straightening up. _Just accept this, and move on, _He told himself firmly. 

  
  


He heard the sound of footsteps approaching, and quickly looked over in their direction. Walking slowly towards them, were two figures, one really rather smaller than the other. 

Then as they came closer, Arthur realised he recognised the small figure.

“Wait,” He said slowly to Morgana beside him, “Is that…?”

  
  


Morgana smiled. “Mordred.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to the people who have been leaving kudos, and the lovely comments, I really do appreciate it!   
I've had a few chapters written for a while, but I was going to pause updates until I had completely written the entire thing, but since it's been so long, I thought I'd just post it anyway! I've got a fair bit done, and I suppose we'll see! 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed! :)


	7. In which Merlin dislikes titles

** Chapter 7: In which Merlin dislikes titles **

Merlin stared in shock at the small boy walking towards them beside the druid. 

He couldn’t help a slight shiver of foreboding, the dragon’s prophesy echoed in his mind. 

But no, he reminded himself firmly, if Morgana wasn’t going to be evil, then why should Mordred be? Mordred was just a kid, and he had most certainly not done anything yet to warrant him being suspicious. 

The small boy grinned widely as he saw the group. 

_Hello! _ He heard the boy call in his mind and smiled. 

_Hello there. _

* * *

Arriving at the druid’s camp was a surprise. Arthur noticed a few casting them looks, some looked appraising, as if wondering just how sensible it was to trust their futures in the group, while others looked awed. 

Mordred lead the way happily, bouncing on his feel slightly, a complete change to the quiet boy Arthur had known, what felt like so long ago. 

So much had changed. For both of them apparently. 

They were led to a small tent. Arthur hesitated for a moment, but Mordred simply strolled in, and Arthur followed, ducking through the doorway. 

Inside was a druid, who Mordred cheerfully introduced as Iseldir. He was looking at them, and his expression was unreadable. 

He spoke softly. “Welcome, Arthur. Morgana. Emrys. Guinevere.” 

“I’d prefer Merlin,” Merlin spoke up, making Iseldir raise his eyebrows. Then he nodded. 

“Merlin, then.”

Arthur glanced at Merlin quizzically, and Merlin shuffled, looking faintly embarrassed. 

“Kilgharrah told me that apparently the druids know me as ‘Emrys’.”

“But why?” 

Merlin shrugged helplessly. 

“You don’t know?” Iseldir asked in slight surprise, drawing the attention of the group. 

“I mean...sort of?” Merlin said, a little defensively. 

“Well, I don’t,” Morgana said, glaring at Merlin briefly, before turning to Iseldir. “If you would explain…?” 

“Of course.” Iseldir settled back, and gestured for the others to sit as well, which they did. “Emrys is your name, you are the one told of in the prophesy. You shall work alongside the Once and Future King, and you will usher in the time of Albion.”

Merlin nodded as if this information was known, but Arthur felt a shock go through him. “The...sorry, who is he working with?” 

“The Once and Future king,” Iseldir repeated, inclining his head towards Arthur. “This, we believe to be you.” 

“Right.” 

He felt someone clasp his hand, and glancing to his side he saw Gwen glancing over, looking faintly concerned. She squeezed his hand reassuringly. 

“Might I inquire what prompted you to seek us out?”

“Actually, this is the sort of thing we wanted to discuss. There are things that we don’t know, or fully understand. As you can imagine, there isn’t a lot of information readily available about magic, and we decided to seek you out.”

“I see,” Iseldir said, templing his fingers. “Well. Where should we begin?” 

Arthur spoke up. “We were wondering about prophesies. About seeing the future, more specifically, and whether it is certain.”

Iseldir frowned. “Might I ask what prompted this? I wouldn’t have thought that this is a prophesy you would wish to avert.” 

Morgana sighed. “That was not quite what we were referring to. Mer-someone claimed to have seen the future, and they claimed that they saw me die. There wasn’t much more to that, but naturally, I am... curious as to whether there is a chance that this is incorrect, or whether there is any point in trying to avoid it.” 

Arthur shared a look with Merlin, surprised that she hadn’t mentioned him. 

Iseldir let out a breath, leaning back in his chair. “A true seer is rare, unfortunately, most are merely charlatans, hoping for some extra money-”

“I have good reason to believe that this person was not lying to me.” 

“I see. There are people, although it is rare, who can see glimpses of a potential future. In some cases, this future will come to pass if the information is acted upon, in others it will occur if a person continues as they were. Such matters are entirely uncertain.”

_And unhelpful._

“I see. So, is there any point in acting on the information you are given?” 

“The seers gift naturally has a purpose. The small glimpses of the future allow a person to see potentials, this thing is capable of happening, or that. They can inspire hope.” 

“In this _specific _case,” Arthur cut in, “And by that, I mean the ‘potential’ of Morgana being killed, does not exactly ‘inspire hope’. So, I would like to know whether there is any way of decreasing the chances of her death.” He tried to control his tone, keeping it respectful. He wasn’t sure he did a particularly good job. 

Oh well. 

“I cannot say.” _Oh brilliant. _“You should talk with the seer who glimpsed this. Such glimpses are believed by many to be a gift from the gods, and there will be a reason. Perhaps in seeing this, you will make a decision that you would not have otherwise, and that will lead you to the future the gods wish. Or perhaps it was a warning. I cannot say. Some people devote their lives to the understanding of such glimpses. It is a complicated art.” 

“Right.” 

There was an uncomfortable silence, one no one seemed quite sure how to break. 

“Was there...anything else you wished to discuss?” Iseldir was looking calm once more, but Arthur couldn’t help but feel that this conversation had not gone quite how he had been expecting. 

“I was wondering if we could discuss how magic has been regulated in the past,” Morgana spoke up, “Magic has been illegal in Camelot for as long as I can remember, and records have been destroyed from the time before.”

“I see. Well, magic was controlled by the same laws as control non magic people, through laws against harm done to one another. People were taught of what magic could do, and what it could not, and from the understanding of what magic can do, there was less fear of it. There were once advisors, from the dragon lords, or other powerful sorcerers, and the Court Sorcerer was the highest position of all, beside the monarch, of course.”

“The...what?” Merlin asked. 

Arthur couldn’t help but feel somewhat grateful that he hadn’t had to be the one asking. He was already feeling like a child again, sitting at his father’s feet, being lectured about how the world worked. But he wasn’t a child anymore. 

“The Court Sorcerer had many duties. It was their task to advise, their speciality being on magic, but in times of war they could be called on to fight, or to protect, using their gifts, according to their strengths. It was an honoured position to hold.” 

Morgana raised her eyebrows but did not say anything. 

Iseldir looked at them again, carefully, and Arthur had the uncomfortable feeling that they were being judged. The druid’s expression betrayed nothing; his eyes were impassive. 

“I was wondering actually,” Merlin spoke up, “If we could discuss how we can start bringing about more acceptance of magic. It’s naive to expect that Arthur would be able to revoke the ban on magic, and common opinion will change immediately. The process would likely be gradual, so it might be smart for us to start as soon as is possible, public opinion will matter greatly.”

“Indeed.” Iseldir seemed to consider this for a moment. “Truthfully, there is no way that this process can move easily. To go against the king, will not be without risk to anyone involved. But without that risk, there will be no change at all.”

“I’ve been considering revealing my magic,” Morgana said casually. 

Arthur whipped around “You were _what?”_

Merlin appeared to be thinking the same thing, he had blanched completely, and Gwen looked equally startled. 

Morgana looked around at each of them, a little defensively. “Well, it’s going to come out anyway, and I think that if it were publicly known, then it might work change quicker than we could hope for!”

“That is perhaps too much risk,” Iseldir cut in, and Arthur whirled to face him. “When it becomes known, then your position will be invaluable, but currently, I fear it would do more harm than good. You would most likely be killed, if it was revealed now. One day, of course, but not yet.”

Morgana slumped back, and Arthur let out a relieved breath. Well, that was another worry for him to try and ignore. 

“If people could just see magic being used for good,” Merlin considered, “Then I think it would really help. But I just don’t see how it could happen. It would be asking so much of magic users-”

“If a magic user could disguise themselves,” Gwen interrupted, her eyes lighting up, “Then maybe-”

Merlin seemed to be following the same thought process, and had sat up straighter, a grin beginning to spread, “Then they could be safer, but people would still be able to see the good parts of magic!”

“Exactly!” The two grinned at each other, before turning to Iseldir. “What do you think?” Gwen asked. 

“That...might just work. I know many who would be willing to undertake such a thing. It would not be without risk, but...it could work.” 

Arthur suppressed the small voice, that sounded so much like his father, the one reminding him that he was absolutely breaking the law, coming close to treasonous talk. This was so much more than just hiding two sorcerers. 

But what kind of a person would he be if he didn’t help, now he understood? 

His father was wrong. That thought pained him, but he couldn’t deny it. And Arthur needed to do what was right. 

“There’s another thing,” He said, with some difficulty. This, more than anything else, felt like a betrayal. “I think that...well. If people knew the truth of how the purge began, of my father’s actions, then people may be more accepting of magic. Most people believe that the law against magic is due to magic being inherently evil. If they knew the truth...then…” He trailed off, uncertain how exactly to phrase what he was thinking. 

It felt uncomfortably close to treason, this kind of talk. And yet, that almost exactly what he was doing. He was defying his father, the king, in so many ways. 

It was the right thing. Wasn’t it? Was this what he was meant to be doing? 

His father had committed atrocities, but he was still his father. And yet. That wasn’t exactly an excuse. 

People deserved the truth. They deserved to judge for themselves. Hiding the information would only hurt more people.

Uther had brought it on himself. It wasn’t as if they were making up rumours, they were telling the truth. And Arthur couldn’t stand by anymore.

“People deserve to know the truth,” Morgana said firmly, casting a smile at Arthur, “The fact that all this is a result of Uther’s personal vendetta should be known.” 

Arthur swallowed the lump in his throat. It was true. That didn’t stop this feeling as if he had betrayed his father. Maybe he had. 

But it was all to help the people. To help Camelot. 

Being loyal to his father was meant to mean being loyal to Camelot. But it wasn’t. And he knew it. 

He had chosen his side. 

Iseldir considered for a moment. “That would help the cause considerably. But it must be handled carefully. This has given us all a lot to think about,” Iseldir said, sitting up a little more, “We can talk more at a later date. For now, it may be time for you to return.” 

Arthur startled at that. “Yes, of course,” He said, getting to his feet, and the other stood as well. “Thank you,” He said to Iseldir, who had gotten to his feet, and was leading them out the tent. 

“It was no problem,” He smiled kindly, “You must all return, so we might talk more.” 

“Of course,” Morgana smiled back, as they stepped out the tent into the clearing once more. 

Arthur froze at the sight outside. 

The druids seemed to be waiting outside for them, and had gathered around, and they all looked happy to see them. 

Arthur swallowed back his surprise, and made himself stand up a little straighter. It was just like walking through Camelot after a particularly successful mission, when people would sometimes come out to watch him and his knights ride in, and he just had to treat it as such. 

With the ease of years of practice, he smiled, and began to make his way through. 

* * *

There was a crowd of people outside the tent. 

Merlin was frozen for a moment, just taking it all in. They all looked at him, smiling back, just seeming so happy to see the people they believed would end all their suffering. 

No pressure. 

_I do apologise_, Iseldir’s voice echoed in his head, sounding apologetic, _They just want to see you. There’s a lot of hope resting on you._

Merlin swallowed. Arthur was in front, and only seemed perturbed for a moment, before beginning to stride through. Morgana looked hesitant for a moment, before moving in the same direction as Arthur, while Gwen stood beside him. 

“You alright?” She said in an undertone. 

“Fine,” Merlin said, forcing down his unease at being faced with their happiness at the sight of them, and turning to Gwen with a grin. “Let’s go.” 

She smiled back, and together they made their way through. 

It was a blur of people, people smiling, an small girl ran up and pressed a flower into his hand, he thanked her, feeling heat in his face, and knew he was blushing, the girl bounced, and ran back to her mother, a young man who couldn’t be much younger than himself thanked him profusely, Merlin asked him to _please don’t call me Lord Emrys, Merlin’s fine_, the man blushed and shook his hand, and there were more, more people who all seemed so happy, so confident in his destiny, and while Merlin was still a little uncomfortable, he couldn’t help but feel the hope of the crowd. 

He could do this. All these people, they wanted a better life. And that life suddenly seemed so much more possible, so much closer than it had been before. 

* * *

When they finally left, they found their horses still tied up to the tree they had been left at, and Morgana quickly mounted, grinning. The crowd’s happiness had been infectious, and she could see the others had found it the same. 

Arthur hopped up onto his own horse, as did Gwen, Merlin paused a moment to tuck a small flower into his neckerchief, Morgana grinned, before he mounted, and the four set off. 

For a while, no one spoke, each lost in their own thoughts. 

“So,” Arthur said, breaking the silence, “_Lord _Emrys?” 

Merlin blushed furiously, the blush creeping up into his ears, and didn’t reply. 

“Lord?” 

“Apparently.” Merlin said shortly. 

_“Lord?”_

Gwen snickered a little, riding beside Morgana, who couldn’t help but grin as well. Hearing, Merlin started to grin as well, although the blush remained. 

“Is it an official title?” Arthur pressed. 

“Oh, shut up,” Merlin shot back, grinning a little, making Morgana laugh a little more. 

“You do not get to say that!” Arthur complained, with no real heat, “I am the Crown Prince of Camelot-”

“And someone needs to make sure that head stays small enough to fit a helmet on,” Merlin pointed out, grinning, “I consider it part of my duties.” 

The friendly bickering continued as they made their way back to Camelot, as they saw the towers rising up, the sun beginning to set behind them, casting the sky into a gentle orange, the towers becoming silhouettes before it, lights of the windows glittering.

The sight of Camelot never got old for Morgana, and she looked up at the castle above, smiling to herself. 

All the threats of the world seemed to have faded away, and when it was just them, the world they were trying to build felt so close. 

If anyone could change everything, it would be them. 

* * *

They rode into the courtyard, the horse’s hooves clattering against the cobbles, and Morgana swung herself off her horse, dismounting easily. 

“Here, I’ll take it,” Arthur said, having dismounted already, leaning over to lead both their horses to the stables. 

“I can handle it,” Morgana replied easily, attempting to take the reins back. But Arthur didn’t let go. “Arthur?” 

“It’s no problem,” Arthur said, his voice starting to sound a little more tense. The horse shifted slightly, seeming uncomfortable with the changing atmosphere. 

Morgana stared at him for a moment. “Give me back the reins.” Then it clicked. “Is this about what those crystals said? You heard Iseldir, it’s all ridiculous, nothing is certain, so let’s just carry on.”

“There’s no point in doing anything unnecessary,” Arthur said carefully. Merlin and Gwen were looking between them anxiously, and some of the stable hands were starting to cast them odd looks. 

“I don’t care about the stupid prophesy,” Morgana said in an undertone, aware of the people listening in, “I don’t need you to be coddling me. I can take care of my own _horse.”_

“Um, guys...?” Merlin said, hesitantly. He and Gwen had already stabled their own horses and were now waiting uncertainly as to what to do. 

Arthur wasn’t budging. The horse snorted slightly, and was moving slightly restlessly, seeming as uncomfortable as everyone else. 

“I can take the horse?” Gwen suggested, “It’s actually my job anyway-”

“I don’t need any of this,” Morgana shot back. How had they ruined her good mood so easily? “I can _handle this_, I have done many times, I don’t _care _what you think, so, _give me the reins.”_

Arthur raised his eyebrows, and turned, apparently about to lead away the horse. 

“Arthur!” Morgana snapped, reaching out to take the reins back, “Stop being ridiculous!”

“How am I the one being ridiculous?” Arthur shot back, “Get off the reins, I’m doing this for you-”

“Well, I don’t want you to!”  
  
  


It happened so quickly. 

She saw something in the corner of her eye, she spun to face her horse, to see him rearing, the hoof suddenly so very close. 

Then an explosion of pain, and the world reeled. She blinked, and saw the horrified faces around her, Arthur staring in horror, Merlin’s eyes were wide, Gwen was saying something, coming closer, but her voice was oddly muffled. 

The side of her head felt odd. She reached up to touch it, and her hand came away bloody. 

“Oh.” She said quietly. So that was why they were staring. 

And suddenly the world was moving so much more quickly, and the ground was tilting up to meet her, and then. 

Nothing. 

  
  
  
  



	8. Let's go Summon a Dragon

**Chapter 8: Lets go Summon a Dragon**

Morgana lay on the cot where Gaius put his patients when things were serious. 

_ It’s my fault.  _ Arthur knew it, and he kept thinking back. He had made a mistake. Morgana had been right. He had believed that stupid prophesy, and now Morgana was dying. 

And it was all his fault. 

Gaius and Merlin were leaning over her, Gaius barking commands, this herb, that herb, Merlin was darting here and there, and Arthur was just standing there, no doubt in the way, but he couldn’t just leave. 

Gwen came bursting in, with the water she had been sent to collect. 

“There has to be something I can do,” Merlin said, passing Gaius a paste of crushed herbs, which Gaius began to apply over the wound. 

“Yes, you can grind some-”

“I mean, more than herbs,” Merlin snapped, looking ashen. 

Morgana was so very pale. She was barely breathing. 

Gaius had said she was, and Arthur had to believe him, he  _ had to _ . 

“Uther has been informed, he will be here in a matter of moments, you cannot risk it now-”   
  


“I can’t just let her  _ die  _ here!”

The horse had been getting steadily more agitated as he and Morgana had argued, he had been so sure then that he was doing the right thing, that she was just being stubborn, he hadn’t even really been paying attention to the horse, the way it was shifting it’s hooves, the way it was snorting. 

He should have known what might happen, he  _ did _ know what might happen, he had had a warning of the danger to her, and he knew what horses looked like before they reared. 

“Merlin, you can’t, not right now, later. Healing is not your forte, you need to know exactly what you are doing before you attempt such a thing, or you risk making her condition worse, and that will take  _ time.” _

She had looked so surprised when the hoof connected with the side of her head, and there had been that resounding  _ crack _ , it made him sick just to hear. The blood had started so quickly, streaming down, her hair starting to become matted from it all. And he had done nothing, just staring in horror. Her legs had given way, and he’d been able to move again, he’d caught her, and the courtyard was chaos, Merlin ran to Gaius, and Arthur had lifted up Morgana, eyes shut, face so very pale, and moved as quickly as he could. 

Merlin passed Gaius another mixture, this one smelling sweet, the paste ground down to a pale purple. It shimmered slightly, in a way that herbs shouldn’t. 

“What did you do?” Gaius hissed, noticing it. 

“Same as ever when it’s bad,” Merlin shot back, “It’s not powerful, but it’s been useful before. 

Gaius gritted his teeth, before applying the mixture carefully. 

The door burst open. “Morgana? Where is she?” Uther had arrived, his eyes looking wildly around, taking in the scene. As he saw Morgana, he made an odd, soft cry. 

“How did it happen?” He demanded. 

“It was accident, your Majesty,” Gwen said quietly, “Her horse reared unexpectedly-”   
  


“Gaius, will she recover?” 

Arthur looked to Gaius, now pulling down a small bottle of some concoction from a shelf, Merlin having taken over applying the mixture over the wound. The bleeding seemed to have stopped, Arthur hoped it was a result of the mixtures working, rather than...anything else. 

“I cannot be certain, Sire,” Gaius said, unstopping the bottle with a pop, “These sort of head wounds can be serious, I need patience and quiet to work.” 

“Of course,” Uther said, quickly backing away a little, “Whatever is needed.” 

Gaius took Merlin’s place, Merlin backing away, as Gaius began to stitch up the side of her head. 

“Bandages Merlin,” He called quickly, and Merlin was moving once more. 

Arthur couldn’t remember feeling so helpless before. 

Eventually, Gaius stood back. 

“Well?” Uther demanded, “Will she be alright now?” 

Gaius looked over at them sadly. “She has sustained a serious injury. I can heal her skin, but she is bleeding inside. There is very little I can do for her now.”

The words took a moment to process. And then there was nothing that could be said. 

Gwen’s expression was firm, jaw held tightly, looking at Morgana lying back against the table, Merlin had stuffed his hands in his pockets to try and stop them shaking, Gaius was just looking solemn, Uther was looking as if someone had hit him, while Arthur…

There’d been a time when Arthur had been walking in the woods, long ago, on some hunt. He’d been talking, laughing, pleased at having succeeded, and hadn’t been paying attention to the ground, until he took a step, not noticing the sudden drop, a hole from some animal or other. He still remembered that plunging feeling, of walking along normally, until he put down his foot, and the ground just not being there. 

That was how he felt now. 

And suddenly he couldn’t bare it any more, and without a word, he swung around, and walked out the room. 

**  
  
**

* * *

**  
  
**

It wasn’t long until Merlin, Gaius and Gwen were alone. 

Arthur had walked out, his expression unreadable, and Uther had left not long after, seeming uncertain quite what to do with himself. It might have been funny if the situation wasn’t so dire, seeing Uther look so very lost, so unlike himself. 

Merlin had been alright for a while. He was busy, he wasn’t thinking about Morgana, he was focused on the patient needing help. 

But now there was nothing more to do. 

Her breathing was the only noise in the room. Rattling slightly, each breath drawn in with difficulty, then released. A hand suddenly gripped his, and he looked over in surprise to see Gwen, looking fierce. 

“She’s going to be fine,” She said firmly, her voice shaking ever so slightly, “She has to be. She’s  _ Morgana” _ As if by simply being Morgana, she could shake off such an injury with ease. 

Still, if anyone could…

Merlin gave a watery smile. “Yeah. She has to be fine.” 

Gaius looked over at the two, looking unwilling to break their fragile hopes, but equally unwilling to let them be so certain. Merlin realised suddenly that he didn’t want to be told that Gwen was wrong, not right now. 

“Is there something  _ I  _ can do now?” He said before Gaius could speak, “Anything you might know?” 

Gaius shook his head slowly. “I do not know of any spell strong enough for this.”

“There has to be something!” 

“We can check the other books,” Gwen said suddenly, and Merlin turned back to her, “The goblin books. It could be that there is something of some use to us-”

Merlin didn’t even pause, he was already dashing for the door, Gwen on his heels. 

**  
  
**

* * *

**  
  
**

The cavern was dark, and the shadows from the stalagmites, from the pale blue shimmering light of the orb Merlin had conjure up, seeming oddly menacing. 

There was no time for appreciating the view though. Morgana and Merlin had spread out the books across the cavern, not wanting to keep them all in the library, lest they ben seen traipsing around the castle carrying books on magic, but since the cavern was fairly open to the elements, it had meant they were spread out, small piles of books stacked up in nooks and crannies deemed sufficiently waterproof. 

Merlin had darted over to a dark corner, the blue orb trailing behind, lighting up the area as they approached, before he rolled a small rock to the side, revealing the pile of books behind, and Gwen quickly approached and together they began to sift through, finding titles that seemed relevant. At one point he picked one up, made a disgusted sound, and tossed a book aside. 

As Gwen glanced over, she saw the title. “ _ The Art of the Future” _ it read in intricate letters. 

She went back to the search. 

It wasn’t long before they had gathered together a small collection of seemingly revelevent books, and began skimming through them, trying to find a mention of something helpful. 

Gwen began reading carefully, but after a while, she began skimming passages, looking for anything useful. 

She couldn’t help her thoughts drifting into panicked circles occasionally, the longer they went without finding anything, and every time, she forced her concentration back on the book. 

The next book would have something. 

No, the next one then. 

Or maybe the next. 

As she skimmed through the book, her eyes suddenly caught on something, and she stopped flicking through, and reread the passage. 

“Merlin, come here,” She called. He looked up from his own book, looking eager. 

“You found something?”

“I don’t know, maybe.”

“What is it?” 

Gwen looked over it again quickly. “This book, it’s about old powers, forgotten magic and theories of old styles,” She explained quickly, “It’s mostly uncertain on things, but here, just, it mentions dragons and dragon lords. Apparently, a lot of dragon lords lived longer lives than other people, they were able to overcome injuries that others couldn’t, and the author has an idea that a dragon’s magic was powerful enough that they could cure injuries or illnesses that would otherwise be fatal.” 

“But Morgana isn’t a dragon lord,” Merlin pointed out, looking uncertain what Gwen was trying to say. 

“But  _ you  _ are, and you know a dragon, and maybe, just maybe the dragon could heal Morgana, or knows how to.”   
  


“How would we-”

“I don’t know, but it’s the best we’ve got so far! Do you have any better suggestions?” Gwen snapped. 

Merlin shook his head slowly, and glanced over at the large pile of abandoned books that they’d already tried. 

“No,” He said quietly, “I don’t. You’re right, that’s the best plan we have.” 

**  
  
**

* * *

**  
  
**

They found Arthur in the middle of destroying a straw dummy. The sacking covering it had broken, and straw was scattered around it, something Arthur hadn’t seemed able to notice, as he continued to single mindedly destroy it. 

But when they’d approached, and told him they might have an idea, he had dropped it immediately, and now they were gathered in Gaius’s rooms, trying to figure out the plan. 

“So, the plan is to take Morgana up a mountain, and hand her over to a dragon, in the hopes that the dragon will just heal her for us?” Arthur summed up, “A dragon, who I might add, who has made it clear that he believed Morgana should be dead? Is that the plan? I really am asking, I want to know.” 

“Yeah,” Merlin said, none of his usual humour in his voice, “That’s about right.” 

Arthur closed his eyes, and scraped his fingers through his hair. “Right. Right. Ok. How are we doing this then?” 

Gwen and Merlin shared a look. 

“Merlin, how long does it take to reach the mountains?” 

“For the dragon, it takes only about a minute, maybe a little more,” Merlin considered, “For us, well, when Morgana and I travelled there, it took several days. Admittedly, we were held up by attacks, but I doubt the route will have become any easier.” 

“That’ll take too long,” Gaius interrupted, making Gwen jump. She hadn’t realised he was there, “Morgana wont be able to take that much time riding, not as she is. For this to work you’d need the dragon to come to you.” 

“We need the dragon to come to us, because it would take to long for us to get to him, but we need to get to the dragon in order for the dragon to know to come at all,” Arthur pointed out, “How exactly do we get the dragon to come here?” 

“The dragon lords once were able to call upon the dragons in times of need,” Gaius said into the sudden silence, “Merlin, perhaps-”

Merlin was shaking his head. “My father told me that I am not trained enough, most of the dragon lords gift is inherited upon the parent’s death-”

“That may be,” Gwen cut across him, “But you’re the only chance we’ve got.”

Merlin swallowed hard. 

“Oh good,” Merlin said at last. “Well. Let’s go summon a dragon.” 

* * *

**  
  
**

This was perhaps one of the most useless plans Arthur had ever been a part of. 

Morgana needed the dragon to heal her. 

However, they could not take Morgana to the dragon, or take the dragon to Morgana, Morgana needed to be with Gaius, and Gaius could not go with the dragon, and they couldn’t take Morgana out of the castle subtly, or without making her condition worse. 

This meant the plan had boiled down to Merlin, Gwen and himself going out into the forest, and once they had gone enough of a distance away, Merlin was going to try shouting for the dragon. They were then going to cross their fingers and hope the dragon could hear. 

In the unlikely event that the dragon could, then the dragon would descend, and inform them of a secret dragon ritual or some rubbish, and they could go skip away and heal Morgana themselves. 

It was a useless plan. 

But it was better than nothing. 

And currently, doing nothing was the alternative. 

That was why, despite the sun having set some time ago, the three were now saddled up on horses once more, and riding as fast they could, escaping Camelot, and into the forest, ignoring the startled calls of the guards. 

They rode hard, the air was cold, the wind biting into any exposed flesh, the thundering of the horse below him. Arthur had been forced to remove his cloak, the cord had begun digging into his neck as the wind caught it, and without it he felt oddly exposed. Gwen’s hair streamed out behind her as she rode determinedly, and Merlin, as a first, rode on slightly ahead. 

Arthur could hear small animals darting away, an owl gave a startled sounding hoot. Once they had gone enough of a distance, and they were sure no one had followed, Merlin had lit one of those orbs of light he seemed to like so much, cutting through the darkness with it’s ghostly blue light. 

“Over there!” Gwen called, turning her horse slightly, and now she was in front, and came bursting out into a clearing. 

The clouds drifted, and as they arrived, they parted once more, allowing the pale moonlight to shine down on the open clearing. Arthur recognised it. 

This was the place they had fought the dragon, which felt so long ago now. 

**  
  
**

They brought their horses to a stop and dismounted.

They looked oddly eerie in the moonlight, the shadows of Gwen and Merlin’s faces were starker, the colour drained, leaving them looking far more pale than usual. Together, he and Gwen turned to Merlin. 

“Well?” Arthur demanded, breathing heavily from the ride, “Can you call him?”

Merlin looked up, the moonlight landing across his face. “I can try.” 

* * *

Merlin had no idea what he was doing. 

There was no way this could work. 

There was no way he couldn’t at least try. 

And so he closed his eyes, and tried to remember the words his father had used to call the dragon before. 

“You spoke to the dragon before, didn’t you?” Arthur asked him. 

“Yeah, but it was different when Kilgarrah was actually here-”

“Look, Merlin,” Arthur interrupted him, “I am not going to pretend to understand what you are doing or how you do it. But don’t give up on this before you’ve even tried. Then it’s useless. Can you try imagine that the dragon is here? Remember what it was you did, when you spoke to him before?” 

Merlin blinked. “Ok.” 

Maybe he  _ could  _ do this. “Ok,” He said, a little more firmly. 

He closed his eyes and thought back to that moment, the moment he felt the dragon, that presence in his mind, how it had felt when the dragon had called to him. And then...

His eyes flew open.

“What happened?” Arthur demanded quickly, “Did it work?” 

“I don’t know, I think...I felt him.”

  
“What does that mean?” 

“It means, I might actually be able to do this,” He said, almost unable to believe it. 

He reached out again for that connection and - there! 

The words began to pour out, coming from somewhere deep, as he put his head back shouted out _ “ _ _ O drakon, e male so ftengometta tesd'hup'anankes!” _

Merlin looked around him. Arthur and Gwen were staring at him, open mouthed, looking equally shocked, 

“Did it actually work?” Gwen asked, almost insultingly surprised. 

“Did it?” Arthur asked, in the same tone. 

“Maybe?” Merlin hedged. It had felt right at the time. But the dragon was nowhere to be seen. 

They stood in silence for a long moment. An owl hooted in the distance. 

And then, the sound of a wing beat. 

And in the distance, a silhouette grew, coming closer, and closer. 

Killgarrah landed neatly, and Merlin couldn’t help letting out a delighted whoop. Killgarrah seemed unimpressed. 

“Why have you called me here, young warlock?” He said carefully. “I believed you made it clear that I was no longer wanted around Camelot.” 

“It actually worked,” Arthur said, still sounding stunned. 

Merlin was still not sure whether to be insulted by that. He settled on just ignoring Arthur for them moment, and bowed his head. 

“I am sorry to call you, but the situation is grave,” He said carefully. “Mor - My  _ friend  _ has been injured. It is beyond my power to help. I have called you in the hope that you might know a way to heal them.” 

“Who?” Killgarrah asked cautiously, eyeing the group. 

Merlin had really been hoping he wouldn’t ask. “Someone important to me,” He tried. 

“Who?” Killgarrah’s eyes narrowed, looking them over once more. Then he began to laugh. “The witch?” He said, sounding oddly gleeful, “Is it her? Perhaps all is not yet lost after all.” 

Merlin bit back some retort. He needed Killgarrah. Not trusting his voice, he nodded, and the dragon grinned widely. 

“This is good news,” Killgarrah said, comfortably, “So no, I shall not heal that witch.”

“Please, I am begging you-”

“My answer, is  _ no.”  _

Gwen stepped forward. “You cannot let her die! Not like this!” 

The smile faded away. “I can, and I will,” The dragon stated irritably, “You should be happy for this turn.” 

“Just tell me this,” Gwen said firmly, “Is it within your power to heal her?” 

The dragon sniffed. “Most likely,” he said, casually. 

“But you won’t.” 

“I will not.” 

“You are content to let her just die?” Arthur demanded, seeming unable to believe it. 

“I certainly am.” 

“You’re a monster.” 

Merlin winced. The dragon drew himself up, all the earlier laughter gone. 

“Your father chained  _ me _ ,” he spat, “He locked me away for all those  _ decades, _ and I agreed upon mercy. I still believe in a time in which my kind and those with magic can be free. And you call me a  _ monster? _ Because I understand that which you seem unable to, that sometimes, people  _ need  _ to  _ die.” _

“She hasn’t done anything-” Gwen said, sounding more furious than Merlin had ever heard her. 

“And now she never will,” Kilgrarrah said with a finality. 

“She does not deserve your hatred!” Gwen shouted, “She has been good, and kind, and she wants to help us all bring about the world you want as well! You are on the same side-”

“We most certainly are not!” Killgarrah bristled. 

“Please,” Merlin asked, his voice softer now, “Please, I am begging you. Help us heal her.”

The dragon stared at them all in disbelief. “You know what she will do. You know she is nothing but evil. And yet you will have her back, you cannot bear for the world to be rid of that stain?” Killgrarrah gave them a last look over. “Very well. If you want it so desperately. You know of the consequences, I have told you. I do not believe any good can come of this. But very well, since you are so  _ intent  _ upon ignoring me, then you may deal with those consequences for yourself.” 

“Thank you,” Merlin breathed, feeling as if a weight had lifted. “Thank you, Killgarrah.” 

“Do not thank me,” Killgrarrah said irritably. “Now. Remain still, young warlock. The two of you may wish to stand back,” He warned Arthur and Gwen, who quickly backed away. 

Merlin was not about to argue, and stood stock still, as the dragon drew back his head, and opened his mouth, revealing his teeth. 

For a brief moment, Merlin couldn’t help but wonder if he was about to become a patch of ashes, before he dismissed the idea. Killgarrah wouldn’t. Probably. 

And then the dragon  _ breathed _ . 

It was magic, pure magic, glittering, filling Merlin up, and suddenly the world seemed so much sharper, for a brief moment he saw the drops of dew across each tiny stalk of grass, a small beetle crawling out a trunk of a tree, the bark painfully in focus, the moon was suddenly so much brighter, so much more detailed than he had imagined. 

And just as suddenly, the world snapped back to how it normally was. He blinked, feeling the euphoria that had filled him so suddenly fade away. 

He swayed on his feet just slightly, before he righted himself. And then he smiled. He knew the cure. 

He looked up at Killgarrah, who was eyeing him carefully. “I want you to know, I am truly grateful for that,” He said carefully, inclining his head. 

Killgrarrah inclined his own head, looking oddly unsure. Then his wings spread, and without saying goodbye, he launched himself back into the air, and disappeared into the distance. 

The three looked at each other. 

“Told you it would work,” Arthur said, as he started to grin. 

Gwen rounded on him. “You did not! You were just as surprised as Merlin when Killgarrah actually landed!” 

Merlin spluttered slightly, and Gwen rounded on him as well, her eyes narrowing in a manner not unlike Killgarrah had done. Merlin swallowed back his protests. 

“Well,” He said instead, “Lets find the horses, and be on our way!” And then he laughed. Because the plan was ridiculous. Because the plan had worked. And because they were standing in a small clearing, having faced down an irritable dragon, and it had all  _ worked _ . 

Sometimes, you just have to laugh. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Greek Used: 
> 
> O drakon, e male so ftengometta tesd'hup'anankes! - O dragon, permit the appeal for an audience to speak here, fierce, wise-minded one
> 
> Thank you so much for all the kudos and comments, it's so lovely to know that people are reading this, and enjoying it! :)


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